Monday, August 13, 2012

Gorgasia preclara & Heteroconger hassi

Garden Eels!

Those with yellow and white stripe are called Splendid Garden Eel (Gorgasia preclara) and also Orangebarred Garden Eel.

Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Actinopterygii
Order:Anguilliformes
Family:Congridae
Subfamily:Heterocongrinae
Genus:Gorgasia
Species:G. preclara
Binomial name
Gorgasia preclara
J. E. Böhlke & Randall, 1981
One with dots along its grey body shown at the back of first pic is called spotted garden eel, Heteroconger hassi.
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Actinopterygii
Order:Anguilliformes
Family:Congridae
Genus:Heteroconger
Species:H. hassi
Binomial name
Heteroconger hassi
Kaup, 1856
Garden Eel is a burrower, who loves the swaying back and forth in the ocean, so they pop their heads out from their burrow. And if a predator comes, they are usually pretty quick at ducking back into the safety of their underground home.

They burrow into the ocean floor by making themselves very rigid by tightening all of their muscles and drive their tail into the sandy ocean floor. Their body has a hard, protective layer that prevents them from being injured during this burrowing process. Once they have their underground home excavated, they will use the slime on their body to create a cement-like substance, stopping the burrow from caving in on them.

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