Spotted garden eel
Heteroconger hassi
Where at Shedd?
Wild Reef
| Diet | Drifting zooplankton |
|---|---|
| Size | Length: Up to 15.7 inches (40 cm) |
| Type | Fishes |
| Range | In burrows on sandy slopes in the Indian and West-Central Pacific Oceans |
| Habitat | Indian and west central Pacific Oceans on sandy slopes. Each eel lives in a single burrow within a colony of several hundred |
Did you know?
- Skittish garden eels escape predators by diving tail-first into reef-bottom burrows. When they’re not hiding, these fish sway in the current like blades of seagrass.
- A hungry garden eel extends most of its body out of its burrow and picks tiny animals from the water that flows by it.
- In the wild garden eels live in colonies which can consist of thousands of individuals. These colonies look like sea grasses swaying in the currents until you get close to them.
- They are very shy so as divers approach they will retreat into their burrows. At Shedd, the eels stay out since they see their reflection in the window rather than the guests viewing them.