Fimbriated and Yellowhead Morays

[frankdatank]

Is there a difference in these 2 eels? I just bought a yellowhead moray at my lts and it looks EXACTLY like a fimbriated, same pattern and everything. Take a look in the picture and tell me what you think this eel is.

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[I like Triggers]

Yellow head moray is the common name for the Gymnothorax Fimbriatus. I had one for over a year, it ate well over 10 fish including a flame angel, and small clown tang. Here is my old buddy I traded in when he was about 20 inches. They are truley beautiful, but come with a hefty dinner bill.

http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b139/murderyoudied/225%20Running/DSCN0383.jpg

[frankdatank]

thank you for replying and that is a very pretty eel. What did you trade him for? I was debating between this eel and either a tessalata or even a goldentail. I have a 75 gal. tank with 2 groupers, a snapper, a humu trigger, and a angler. You think I went with the right choice? "I got him for only 50 buck also"

[frankdatank]

thank you for replying and that is a very pretty eel. What did you trade him for? I was debating between this eel and either a tessalata or even a goldentail. I have a 75 gal. tank with 2 groupers, a snapper, a humu trigger, and a angler. You think I went with the right choice? "I got him for only 50 buck also"

[frankdatank]

thank you for replying and that is a very pretty eel. What did you trade him for? I was debating between this eel and either a tessalata or even a goldentail. I have a 75 gal. tank with 2 groupers, a snapper, a humu trigger, and a angler. You think I went with the right choice? "I got him for only 50 buck also"

[I like Triggers]

I paid 30 for mine I believe, I traded it to a LFS for $20 credit. These eels get really big, and they grow very fast. anything that looks like it can fit in its mouth will be eaten by it eventually, and anything that looks like it might be too big for him, it will probably eat as well. It ate the fins off a fish of mine too before I could catch him. What kind of filtration is on your 75? That tank really is too small for what your keeping in there.

[frankdatank]

i got a fluval 305 and also a penguin hanging on the top of the tank, ill probably trade him back to the fish store when it gets bigger though, was yours as yellow as mine when it was small? and I thought the scientific name was Gymnothorax rueppelliae.

[I like Triggers]

No, gymnothorax rueppelliae has solid black bands on its body. The head looks very similar though. A picture of G. rueppelliae can be seen here: http://www.poppe-images.com/images/search_results.php?keyword_mh=Gymnothorax+rueppelliae&x=53&y=12

Gymnothorax fimbriatus has spots on its body instead like our eels.
And yes, the gold was very bright the whole time I had it. By the way, you should probably invest in a protein skimmer. Do you have nitrates?

[flfirefighter13]

Ive got one to, he's and awesome pet, but he will eat ANYTING he can get his teeth into hes about 2' and ate a puffer the size of a grown mans fist, not sure how he did it but he managed.

[frankdatank]

I got a seaclone 1000 i believe, I also wanted to get a decent sized tang in there to finish off the bunch. Once again when they get to big ill just trade them back to my LFS. Im decideing over a powder blue, blue hippo, or a naso. Any Suggestions?

[frankdatank]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=8917140#post8917140 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by flfirefighter13
Ive got one to, he's and awesome pet, but he will eat ANYTING he can get his teeth into hes about 2' and ate a puffer the size of a grown mans fist, not sure how he did it but he managed.

How much did you pay for yours?

[hayes112]

I also have one of these eels he has been in my tank for about 3 weeks and is about 18-20" . Does anyone have any suggestions on what a succesful tank mate for him would be? I have a Dog face puffer in with him right now and he realy doesnt show intrest in it. I did unfortunatly lose a fish to this eel my self but I feel it was my fualt as I found out I was not under feeding him by not feeding to his capicity at each meal. Lastly I wanted to touch on the comment about them getting big, in most of my reading I have found that its said in a home aquarium these eels barely exceed 2ft and onlt get to be 3ft in the wild is this information correct ?

[flfirefighter13]

Frank I paid 20 for mine, he was an outcast at a LFS that someone droppepd off due to not fitting in the tank he was liveing in.

Hayes, It was a dog face that mine ate, they where fine togehter for 2 monthes then he just had a snack:) Ive got a small huma huma with mine now and a large porcupine puffer. He has gone at the puffer once and that was a last try at that. The Huma is fast enough to stay away...... so far, he gets a new tank next week so hopefully he will make it till then.

[hayes112]

thats not good, I did some reading on this eel before I got it ,but it was only after I got did I get to all these horror stories about it. I hope my dog face fairs well with the eel. Have people found that this eel will kill even if its being adequatly feed a varity of things. I been feeding mine oyster, krill, silverside, scallops, and squid. I was thinking I trigger might be good with him but I will give time to see how the dog face does before I was money on a fish for his dinner.

[frankdatank]

should I put a naso or a powder blue tang with mine? both decent sized.

[redboxer13]

Ok Maybe i'm the exception but my yellowheaded/finbriated eel is really well behaved for the most part. All i ever read in these posts was about how it killed all their fish. My eel is in a 120 gallon fowlr with a large yellow tang and a medium sized Blue chin trigger. I feed the eel, shrimp, octo, squid, clam, and silvesides. I rotate these foods and feed the eel twice a week till full. He is about 18inches long. The only time he snapped at my fish was when I was feeding him and the blue chin (who was smaller at the time) snuck in, to get some of his food. Well the eel got him, shook him about and took him into the rock work. After a few minutes the eel came out. No tigger. I thought he ate him, but after an hour the trigger came out of the rocks. No real battle scars, just a nip in his dorsal fin. I have had these fish together for over six months. I love the color pattern of this eel and all my friends love him as well.
I just wanted to post a positive report with this eel cause everyone seems to bash it for the most part. PS I keep my skimmer running 24/7 bi weekly water changes, 10%.

[I like Triggers]

the problem with trying to keep these eels full is they grow so fast. if you try to feed it and keep its stomach full, it will outgrow your fish very fast. then if you slip and forget to feed, or if it just feels like it, it will snap and easily suck a fish down.

[cougarguy]

My dad has a fimbriated in his 220 it was a little over 18 " when he got it 6 months ago and is now over 25" and has to date eaten 6 damsels, a 2" tomato clown, a 3" maroon clown, 2 3" hepatus tangs , a 2.5" trigger , and a 6" grouper.

He was then placed in a qt tank for about 4 weeks to see if he was the culprit and during that time nothing came up missing he has since been reintroduced to the tank to see if he will bother anything else, all the fish in the tank now are much bigger then he is but my dad hopes to get rid of him soon anyway.