Saltwater Aquarium Guides FAQs
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Salt/Freshwater Snowflake Moray Eel?
Q. I hope you can answer a couple questions I have regarding the Snowflake Eel. I saw a few in a pet store today that were labeled as being Snowflake, or Freshwater Moray Eels. I was highly curious, so I've started looking for info on them.
Most people said that they are strictly saltwater eels and have been introduced to freshwater as babies, and that they will die if they don't gradually get back to saltwater again. The picture you have under the "Fish of the Week" isn't anything like what I saw. These looked just like moray eels in shape, but they were brown with a few small pale splotches on their sides. Are these just another type of saltwater moray being forced to live in freshwater? Or could these actually be some variety that is native to freshwater? I'd really appreciate any info on this subject. And if they are truly a freshwater variety I am wondering how big they get. The saltwater species can get much too large for a home aquarium. Thank you very much!
A. The only Snowflake Eels that we know of are a saltwater variety. We have collected specimens as large as 4 feet, but when the small ones are kept in a tank, they seem not to grow too much. It never ceases to amaze us the amount of B.S. that is floating around LFSs all over the world. We suggest that you switch LFSs. There are a lot of good ones out there with great info and great service. -- Debbie & Stan Hauter
Q. And are you saying that it's B.S. that the pet store said the eels were freshwater? Or, B.S. that people are saying they're saltwater eels introduced (eventually fatally) to freshwater?
A. What we are saying is, that to the best of our knowledge we are not aware of ANY saltwater moray eels that can be kept in or acclimated to stay in freshwater. The best thing you can do is find some good saltwater and freshwater fish/animal identification books and try to find the eel you saw in the store to determine exactly what type it is. Did the LFS have scientific name for them? This helps a lot in identification. You might visit Shirlie Sharpe, the About Freshwater Aquariums Guide to see if she might be familiar with the eel you are describing.
Note: In response to this email, we wrote our article "Can Saltwater Moray Eels Live in Freshwater?: True Saltwater VS So-Called Freshwater Species". After writing it, it was brought to our attention that in fact there are some "true" moray eels that do inhabit, or can adapt to freshwater and/or brackish water environments. Please refer to our Freshwater VS Saltwater Moray Eels Revisited article for more information about these eels, how to identify them and what their primary water habitat preferences are.
To learn more about the identification and care of saltwater eels, refer to our Eel Care & Photo Resources. -- Debbie & Stan Hauter
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