Saltwater
Ribbon moray
Rhinomuraena quaesita
Muraenidae, Muraeninae
Facts
Characteristics
- Length
- Up to 130 cm
- Body shape
- Eel-like
Care
- Group
- Missing
- Smallest aquarium
- 46,053 liters
- Diet
- Missing
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Behavior
Water values
Smallest tank
Range
Native
Lives wild in American Samoa, Australia, Christmas Island, Cook Islands, France, French Polynesia, Guam, India, and 19 more countries.
More about the species
Description
Adults occur in lagoon and seaward reefs. They are secretive species normally hidden in sand or rubble, sometimes with only its head protruding. Feed on small fishes. Juveniles all black, males have yellow dorsal fin and females change to a nearly all yellow color, but usually with blue in the posterior. Only moray that undergoes abrupt changes in coloration and sex: it is a protandrous hermaphrodite, i.e., functioning males reverse sex to become females. Protandry is diagnosed based on colouration, but not confirmed.
Other names
Other scientific names
- Rhinomuraea quaesita
- Rhinomuraena ambonensis
In other languages
- Trådnæset muræne
- Mustanauhamureena
- Black leafnosed moray eel, Black ribbon eel, Ribbon eel
Articles
All articles
Fish that get along4 min read
Temperament, fin nippers, fish that eat other fish, and fish that need the same water. And what the Harmony mark in the app means.
How to add new fish4 min read
From the store to the tank: how to get the fish used to your water, why you should add only a few at a time, and what to watch for in the first few days.
Quarantine for new fish3 min read
Why new fish should live in a tank of their own for a few weeks before they move in, what you need, and what to look for.
From freshwater to saltwater3 min read
What is different in a saltwater aquarium: salt, refractometer, live rock and corals. An introduction for anyone thinking of giving it a try.