Blue Ribbon Eel

Description:

The ribbon eel, Rhinomuraena quaesita, or Bernis eel, is a species of moray eel, the only member of the genus Rhinomuraena. What is now known as Rhinomuraena quaesita also includes the former Rhinomuraena amboinensis. R. quaesita was used for blue ribbon eels and R. amboinensis for black ribbon eels, but these are now recognized as the same species. The ribbon eel is native to the Indo-Pacific ocean. The ribbon eel is an elegant creature bearing a resemblance to a mythical Chinese dragon with a long, thin body and high dorsal fins. The ribbon eel can easily be recognised by its expanded anterior nostrils. Juveniles and sub-adults are jet black with a yellow dorsal fin, while females are yellow with a black anal fin with white margins on the fins. The adult males are blue with a yellow dorsal fin. The ribbon eel grows to an overall length of approximately 1 m (3.3 ft), and has a life span of up to twenty years.[citation needed] The ribbon eel is the only moray eel that is protandric, meaning having male sexual organs while young, and female organs later in life.