Diver has extreme close encounter with giant moray eels

Moray Eels are enormous and formidable creatures with not one, but two sets of teeth that are large and powerful. The second set of jaws are actually located in the throat. (Pharyngeal jaws) They thrust forward to grab prey and drag it inside the eel’s mouth. The bite of the Moray Eel is extremely dangerous. The eel is also capable of anchoring its body under coral or in a crevice and pulling an animal so that it cannot break free of its bite. The bite power of the Moray Eel is enough to cut through bone. Their jaw design has actually been copied for the monster featured in the Alien movies. Moray Eels are the only vertebrates to use this remarkable hunting innovation. Moray Eels are also capable of separating the left and right halves of their jaws so that they can seize pray and then work their teeth back and forth to climb them farther up on the animal, much like large snakes.

But despite this powerful and fearsome bite, the Moray Eel is not the savage monster that we believe it to be. It is a greatly misunderstood creature that is the subject of a healthy mixture of myth and fact. This diver demonstrates that, although risky, coming face to face with two Moray Eels doesn’t result in a savage attack. They are curious animals that have poor eyesight. They rely on their sense of smell to locate fish and octopus, their main food sources. They have no desire to attack a diver unless they feel threatened. They emerge from their lair to see if there is food available and one of them seems interested in smelling the camera that records this video.

Divers are fascinated with these eels and find that they make interesting subjects for photographs and videos. They are gorgeous creatures, with a striking emerald green mucous that gives them their unique color. In the past, divers have hand fed Moray Eels, but this has had regrettable results because the eels’ poor eyesight and high prey drive has caused severe injuries. These bites are generally accidental, as the eels are looking for food and not acting out of aggression.

While close contact with Moray Eels, or any wild animals, is generally inadvisable, this diver’s experience does demonstrate that they are not the monsters that they are often made out to be.