#spotted garden
Spotted garden eel (Heteroconger hassi)
Spotted garden eels burrow into the sandy sea bottom to make their home. They eat tiny planktonic animals that float by them in the water current. Spotted garden eels live in the warm parts of the Pacific Ocean and the Red Sea in colonies on the sandy flats and slopes that border coral reefs at depths of 7- 45 m. They can also be found in areas dense with seagrass; this makes it easy for them to blend in with their surroundings.They grow to 40 cm in length and have a body diameter of 1.3 cm.
photo credits: temaki,Hans Hillewaert,publicdomainpictures
Why they are called garden eels: Since they tend to live in groups, the many eel heads “growing” from the sea floor resemble the plants in a garden.
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