{"id":887,"date":"2014-11-20T18:04:24","date_gmt":"2014-11-20T18:04:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.fuertecharter.com\/?p=887"},"modified":"2015-12-09T10:27:37","modified_gmt":"2015-12-09T10:27:37","slug":"morenas-en-fuerteventura-muraenidae","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.fuertecharter.com\/en\/morenas-en-fuerteventura-muraenidae\/","title":{"rendered":"Morays in Fuerteventura (Muraenidae)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Muraenidae\u00a0 are a family of\u00a0 voracious and slippery fish in the shape of eel or snake inhabiting rocky areas or near-shore jetties or puddles (abundant to 50m deep), in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. They are also sometimes found in deeper waters (the largest ones). On the coast of Fuerteventura, we can find some species of this family.<\/h3>\n<\/header>\n
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They are voracious predators of fish, cephalopods and crustaceans, which usually remain hidden in crevices, stalking prey, and usually they only\u00a0 leave their den at night to hunt.<\/p>\n

Morphology<\/strong>
\nThey can be up to five feet long, and weigh 2 to 10kg.
\nThey usually breed between May and October, with a peak set in August.
\nThey have a dorsal fin along the whole body which joins ends with the tail fin. They don\u2019t usually have pectoral and pelvic fins.
\nOne feature of this family is its strong and double jaw (internal and external, \u201callien\u201d type), whose shape\u00a0 allows them to catch prey and swallow it without using its limbs.
\nTheir main predators are other\u00a0 morays and groupers.
\nThey have small eyes and very underdeveloped sight, so they\u2019re usually very suspicious fish which immediately launch attacks with their mouth to defend themselves, and though their bite isn\u2019t usually poisonous, it\u2019s very painful. They also have very small gills, so they often need to open their mouth wide to breathe.
\nTheir skin does not have scales, but a mucous membrane which is toxic in\u00a0 some species, and they have an irregular colouration to help them\u00a0 camouflage.<\/p>\n

Fishing murays<\/strong>
\nFishing murays follows an ancient technique that mixes ritual with work. Fishermen often attract them with some songs that numb them, like siren songs. They are repetitive tunes, which vary from one island to another, but\u00a0 they often say things like: \u201cJo, little Moray \u2026 Jooo\u201d, \u201cCome little Moray , Goldentail Moray,\u00a0 the male is coming to eat your litter\u201d and other typical verses accompanied by loud whistles and a pretty effusive intonation. The old moray fishermen\u00a0 believe that without this technique it would be impossible to catch these animals, as their strong jaws destroy any fishing hook.
\nThese work songs, whose records date back to the sixteenth century, and\u00a0 which are said to have their origin in the ancient Greece, have been incorporated into the musical heritage of the Canary Islands, thanks to musical groups like \u201cLos Sabande\u00f1os\u00a0 who sing \u201cEl pescador de Morenas\u201d or a group of Canarian artists\u201d Artenara\u201d with their song \u201d El Canto de la Morena \u201c.
\nAlong with these songs, the fisherman also uses a hollow reed, inside which there is a wire ending in a noose, with a piece of squid attached as bait. The moray, stunned by repetitive songs, guard down and leaves its den in search of the piece of octopus.<\/p>\n

Gastronomy<\/strong>
\nThe moray is a delicacy for many palates, thanks to the excellent quality of its meat. The coast moray tends to have fewer bones and be more tasty than the deep water moray, which has more fat. As gastronomic anecdote, moray eels were highly valued in the Roman Empire, where the most special celebrations used to serve a menu with morays. The species was bred in a kind of\u00a0 fish farms, and it\u2019s said that Romans often gave them the slaves\u2019 flesh as food, as they said that the flavour of\u00a0 the morays fed with human flesh was delicious. Hence the phrase \u201csentenced to morays.\u201d<\/p>\n

Species<\/strong>
\nAmong the species of Morays we have in the Canary Islands are:<\/p>\n

Black Moray (Muraena Augusti)<\/b>
\nIt is the most abundant and is endemic to these islands and also to\u00a0 Madeira and Azores.
\nIt can be up to 1m long, and\u00a0 it\u2019s usually found\u00a0 within 100m deep.
\nIts body is spindle-shaped and in the distance it may seem black or bluish gray, but if you look closely you can clearly see its white spots.
\nIt prefers rocky bottoms, with caves and hollows to shelter during the day.<\/p>\n

\"FuerteCharter
\u00a9 Sacha Lobenstein_www.enelmar.es<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mediterranean Moray (Muraena helena)<\/b>
\nThis species is the largest one, reaching five feet long, and it\u2019s usually found on the eastern islands, dwelling, like the black Moray, in rocky bottoms. Its bite is poisonous, due to the haemophilus secretion of its palatal mucosa.<\/p>\n

\"FuerteCharter
\u00a9 ojodigital.com<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Fangtooth Moray (Enchelycore anatina)<\/b>
\nAlthough not as plentiful as the black Moray, we can also see it in rocky areas. It differs clearly because of its yellow head and its body patterns. It is a little smaller and it can reach up to 60cms.<\/p>\n

\"FuerteCharter
\u00a9 Philippe Guillaume _www.zoopicture.ru<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Goldentail Moray (Gymnothorax miliaris)<\/b>
\nThis species is often mistaken with the Fangtooth Moray, but its head is more rounded and its body patterns are more marked. It is one of the most elusive and rare to see moray eels, as it is very shy. El Hierro is the island where it is most frequently seen. It is a poorly studied species.<\/p>\n

\"FuerteCharter
\u00a9www.smsg-falklands.org<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

FuerteCharter Team\u00a0<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Muraenidae\u00a0 are a family of\u00a0 voracious and slippery fish in the shape of eel or snake inhabiting rocky areas or near-shore jetties or puddles (abundant to 50m deep), in tropical and subtropical waters worldwide. They are also sometimes found in deeper waters (the largest ones). On the coast of Fuerteventura, we can find some species … Continue reading Morays in Fuerteventura (Muraenidae)<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":895,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[16,4],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\n\t\n