Dive sites4
Marine life profile
Honeycomb moray
Recorded at 4 dive sitesWhere divers encounter it
Explore Honeycomb moray around the world
Muraena melanotis is a moray eel found in the eastern and western Atlantic Ocean. Often territorial around a chosen crevice, it watches passing divers and emerges farther when hunting after dark.
Countries3
Animal groupEels
Safety profilePotentially Dangerous
Meet the species
What to look for
How to Recognize It
Look for an elongated body emerging from reef holes or moving with a smooth, ribbon-like wave.
How It Behaves
Often territorial around a chosen crevice, it watches passing divers and emerges farther when hunting after dark.
Special Ability
A flexible body lets it hunt deep inside cracks that most reef predators cannot enter.
Dive responsibly
Share the water well
How to Approach
Remain outside the shelter, keep fingers clear and use a steady light rather than pushing a camera into the opening.
Safety
Never feed or handle an eel. Its bite is defensive, fast and capable of causing a serious injury.
Worth knowing
The detail you remember
Interesting Facts
It is commonly known as the honeycomb moray.
Where to Find
Inspect reef cracks, wreck openings, rocky ledges and rubble fields, particularly during dusk and night dives.
Known countries
ThailandUnited Arab EmiratesMozambique
Sightings map
Honeycomb moray locations
Plan a dive
Dive sites with reported encounters
Boonsung Wreck
Thailand
Tin mining platform with so much life. This site is just full of snapper, trevally, porcupine pufferfish, batfish, juvenile barracuda, lionfish, honeycomb moray eels, occasional cuttlefish, and even occasional whalesharks!
Inchcape 1
United Arab Emirates
30m 5 minutes from the diving centre, this site is normally our first site of the day (if Advanced) or it is used on the night dive. Like Inchcape 2, Inch 1 was donated to us and sunk in 2001, she now lays on a sand bottom in 30m. The wheelhouse has also been ripped off during the cyclone and moved the wreck 50m!. The wreck is a huge ball of marine life, so much in fact you have to move them away in order to see the wreck. The wreck has two resident Honeycomb Moray eels Fred and Wilma, 2 Seahorses and in the summer months 4 Frog Fish. This site is also a regular Tec training site for us on rebreathers or Sidemount.
Colosseum
Mozambique
One of our more breath-taking dive sites that the northern reefs have to offer us. The range and colour of the corals scattered throughout this reef will literally take your breath away! In terms of the depth here we usually drop down to 27-29 meters in the beginning while then moving up onto the reef itself where this can vary from 24-28 meters. As with all our dive sites in the north we look forward to encounters with sharks. Here we have the chance to look at Whitetip reef sharks, Grey reef sharks and Leopard sharks. Probably the best dive site in the Tofo region to look for Spotted Eagle Rays. Malabar Groupers, Leaf Fish, Honeycomb Moray Eels and Garden Eels are often seen from the drop point amongst the scattered reef on the sandy bottom.
Hogwarts
Mozambique
Dropping down to an amazing bommie rock just off the main section of the reef we have the chance to encounter the majestic Smalleye stingray and often a large honeycomb moray. As we approach the main wall, which drops down to about 28 meters, you will come across a beautiful archway which we can swim through. The top of the reef runs from about 23-26 meters which has two huge cleaning stations, these provide all the cleaner fish a chance to clean both Giant and Reef mantas. Large green turtles are a common sighting which you can find hiding under the overhangs or flapping to the surface. Frog Fish can also be found hugging the sides of the reef and garden eels peeking their heads out of the sand. Clown partner shrimp are also commonly found on the tentacled anemones at Hogwarts. At the end of the dive site we have a huge swim-through which offers the perfect ending to our dive!