![]() ![]() To help their journey through the estuary and river they take advantage of the use the tidal currents, migrating upstream on the flood tide while the tide is carrying them upstream. ![]() But don’t be fooled by the name, these eels also spend some time at sea, returning to spawn (or release their eggs). In freshwater the young eels begin to darken and are then known as elvers and look like tiny versions of the adult and are about 5cm in length. There are also freshwater eels that live in our rivers. Some species are known to create eel gardens, which occur when a group of eels emerge from their burrows to feed on zooplankton, exposing up to two-thirds of their body – resembling plant stalks in a garden. Not all eels live among the reef though – snake and garden eels spend most of their time in sandy burrows. Combine this with the fact they are often hiding in holes or crevices in the reef with only their head partially visible, it’s easy to understand how they can sometimes take divers and snorkellers by surprise! This is the first time the oceanic migrations of Australian eels have been tracked and documented, he says. Moray eels are attractive, with varying colours and patterns, but typically have a bad reputation due to the needle-sharp teeth of some species (used generally to feed on fish) and the fact they nearly always have their mouths open to allow the water to pass over their gills so they can breathe. 'We've tracked eels from the west coast of Victoria for about 3,000 kilometres up to warm tropical waters around New Caledonia, an area around the Coral Sea,' Dr Koster says. There a hundreds of different types of eels found throughout the world in both tropical and temperate waters, but the most commonly recognised type would have to be moray eels. In fact, eels are actually a type of bony fish! They have an internal skeleton made of bone, are cold-blooded and extract oxygen from the water through their gills. ![]()
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