It includes several species of fish known in Italian with the name of Moray eels belonging to the Anguilliformi order. They live in tropical and warm temperate seas, usually on hard shallow waters. They are very common in coral reefs. They are often brown, in many species, however, they may have nettings or light spots. Few species, on the other hand, are yellow, orange and bright blue. They are fish that can exceed 3 meters.
In the Mediterranean Sea, the species Muraena helena is very common and, rather rare, Gymnothorax unicolor . These anguilliformi have a serpentiform body, slightly compressed on the sides, not covered by scales. The dorsal fin and the anal extend without discontinuity from head to tail. The head is short, the teeth are long and pointed. The gill openings are small and round. Many species have tubular nostrils similar to short tentacles. Some species of this family are equipped with an additional "jaw" in the esophagus in order to better swallow bulky prey. They are predators, they hunt fish, molluscs and crustaceans.
The bites of these fish are quite painful and it seems that toxin is present in the saliva even if in minimal quantities. The sinister fame surrounding the moray eels is largely undeserved, the legend that the ancient Romans fed the moray eels of their nurseries with slaves is completely without foundation. Some species can be aggressive and bite, especially if injured. Large tropical species can be dangerous due to ciguatera poisoning.
it
