Undulated Moray
Undulated Moray
Gymnothorax undulatus
CommonMuraenidaeMay bite
ID points
- Yellow-green wavy net pattern on a dark brown ground
- Front of the head yellow-green, unlike the body colour
- Fairly aggressive, often out in the open by day
Basics
- Family
- Muraenidae
- Length
- 80–150 cm
- Depth
- 1-30 m
- Regions
- Indo-Pacific reefs
- Distribution
- Indo-Pacific coral reefs
- Habitat
- Shallow reefs and lagoons
- Diet
- Fish, octopus
Easily confused with
Moray EelSnake-like body with no pectoral or pelvic fins
Ribbon EelFront nostrils flare open into leaf-like petals
Yellow-margin MorayDorsal and anal fins edged in bright yellowFun fact
The undulated moray keeps a second set of jaws in its throat. When it strikes, those pharyngeal jaws shoot forward, seize the prey and drag it back down the gullet, making it one of the rare double-jawed hunters among vertebrates.