Moringua.—Body scaleless, cylindrical, with the trunk much longer than the tail. Pectorals none or small; vertical fins but little developed, limited to the tail. Posterior nostrils in front of the small eye. Cleft of the mouth narrow; teeth uniserial. Heart placed far behind the branchiæ. Gill-openings rather narrow, inferior.
Six species from freshwaters, brackish water, and the coasts of India to the Fiji Islands.
Muræna.—Scaleless. Teeth well developed. Gill-openings and clefts between the branchial arches narrow. Pectoral fins none; dorsal and anal fins well developed. Two nostrils on each side of the upper surface of the snout; the posterior a narrow round foramen, with or without tube; the anterior in a tube.
Fig. 304.—Head of a Muræna.
Fig. 305.—Muræna pavonina, from Southern Seas.
The Murænas are as abundantly represented in the tropical and sub-tropical zones, and have nearly the same range, as Ophichthys. The number of species known exceeds eighty. The majority are armed with formidable pointed teeth, well suited for seizing other fish on which they prey. Large specimens thus armed readily attack persons in and out of the water; and as some species attain a length of some six or eight feet, they are justly feared by fishermen. The minority of species have obtuse and molar-like teeth, their food consisting chiefly of Crustaceans and other hard-shelled animals. Most of the Murænas are beautifully coloured and spotted, some in a regular and constant manner, whilst in others the pattern varies in a most irregular fashion: they have quite the appearance of snakes. The Muræna of the Ancient Romans is Muræna helena, which is not confined to the Mediterranean, but also found in the Indian Ocean and on the coast of Australia. Its skin is of a rich brown, beautifully marked with large yellowish spots, each of which contains smaller brown spots.
Fig. 306.—Muræna picta, from the Indo-Pacific.