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Spotted Garden Eel

Spotted garden eel

Heteroconger hassi

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Fun Facts

These eels rarely leave their sand burrows, even to breed and spawn. If frightened, they'll retracted quickly into their homes.

Species Type:

Fishes

Common Name(s):

Spotted garden eel

Size:

Spotted garden eels are small in size only growing to be about 14-16 inches (36-40 centimeters) in length. They are 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) in body diameter.

Diet:

Sticking their heads out of their burrows, spotted garden eels eat zooplankton floating past.

Range & Habitat:

These eels can be found in sandy bottoms of the Indo-Pacidic ocean.

Details:

Baby spotted garden eels are solid black. As they mature, they turn white in color with three black spots down the sides of their bodies. They use their tails to dig holes into sand and their body mucus to cement the sand together, creating a solid structure for their burrows.