About Gymnothorax meleagris (Shaw, 1795)
Gymnothorax meleagris, commonly called the turkey moray or white-mouth moray, is a medium-sized moray eel. It can reach a maximum length of 120 cm, though most individual specimens that are typically encountered are much smaller. It has a serpentine-shaped body with a dark brown to black base background color, covered in numerous small white spots that are uniformly distributed across the body. The inside of its mouth is completely white. This species is widespread across the Indo-Pacific region, ranging from the eastern coast of Africa (including the Red Sea) to Polynesia and Hawaii, and from southern Japan to New Caledonia. It is a relatively rare moray eel throughout most of its distribution range, but it appears to be common in Hawaii. It prefers shallow waters up to 36 meters (118 feet) deep, found in coral-rich lagoons and reefs with abundant fish life. It spends most of its time hiding in reef holes, and emerges quickly to launch surprise attacks on passing fish to catch them as prey. It detects and senses prey by picking up scent through the water.
