Whitemouth moray eel (Gymnothorax meleagris) care guide

Group
Marine fish
Other names
Turkey moray, Guineafowl moray, White-mouth moray
Family
Muraenidae (moray eels)
Origin
Indo-Pacific, East Africa and Red Sea to Hawaii, Japan to New Caledonia; lagoons and reefs to 36 m
Water
saltwater
Maximum size
120 cm
Temperature
24–27°C
pH
8.1–8.4
Hardness
Salinity SG 1.020–1.025
Care level
expert
Temperament
aggressive
Reef safe
with_caution

Care

A brown moray densely covered in small white spots, with a white mouth lining. It reaches 120 cm, though most are much smaller. It is equally active by day and night and darts out of holes to ambush passing fish. Morays have poor eyesight and find food by smell, so feed with tongs rather than fingers; a bite can be deep and may become infected. Fit a tight lid with every gap closed, as eels are expert escape artists. Water figures here are general marine aquarium guidance, not species-specific: 24–27 °C, pH 8.1–8.4, salinity SG 1.020–1.025. Adults grow far too large for home aquaria and are for public-aquarium-sized systems; no home tank size is given. Selling: our policies require the adult size and long-term tank needs to be stated clearly in the listing. Large fish must travel by a specialist live-animal courier (see the Livestock shipping guide). Sources: Wikipedia, List of marine aquarium fish species (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listofmarineaquariumfishspecies); Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkeymoray). Checked October 2026.

Diet

Ambushes small fish and occasionally takes crustaceans, finding prey by smell.

Breeding

Breeding in home aquaria has not been reported in the sources used here.

Compatibility and tank mates

Listed as reef safe with caution: it leaves corals alone but eats small fish and sometimes crustaceans. Keep only with large fish.

Last updated 8 October 2026. Community-edited care guide on Aquatic-Auctions.

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