Escalators! Escalators! Escalators!!! Eeeelllsss...

Look at that giant piece of seaweed! Oh wait that’s an eel! A green moray eel to be exact. These large eels have a seaweed green color from head to tail and swim in a snake like motion through the water. When given to the chance to inspect one of these eels closer you will see their razor sharp teeth lining the inside of there mouth as they open and close moving water through their gills to breath. You can get so close to these animals because they will usually be found tucked inside a hole in the coral reef with their head facing out. And because they are in their shelter they feel comfortable as you approach them and they are actually very curious. If you calmly approach a moray eel and wait outside it’s home more than likely he will slowly inch out to get a closer look at you. These animals may seem scary because of their dangerously sharp teeth but they are actually very friendly. During my dive yesterday I was able to experience some amazing interactions with these eels. Our dive master Slate came down with a bucket of fish to feed them and as soon as the first eel was out to grab a bite, the next thing I knew I had another eel nuzzled between my legs using me as cover. They would swim right up to my camera and bump right into it or take a very light curious nibble at my leg. The friendly and curious nature of the eels truly amazed me. Some people may say that this nature is due to the fact that our dive master slate has been feeding these eels for almost 40 years now, but i don’t think thats the case. My opinion on the matter comes from one special eel that I spent almost 10 minutes getting to know. While all the large adult eels were feeding i spotted a very small juvenile eel tucked in his reef hole. I approached him slowly and allowed him to check me out. After a felt he was comfortable with me i began to push piles of sand towards him and he would dig his nose through the sand until he found my hand. I did this several times and he became less and less shy with each pile of sand. After about 5 minutes it almost seems like we were playing a game. Although these eels are top predators in their environment I also believe they are very intelligent and have great personality.

#Escalatorsandeels #garryneedsanewpairofshoes #50%sea #50%weed #itsamoray

https://www.aqua.org/Experience/Species-Spotlights/green-moray-eel

http://www.captainslate.com/