Q:I'm not sure if it applies to one specific species of eels or all of them, but did you know that they have a second pair of jaws deep in their throat? When they bite down on their prey the second pair of jaws launches from the back of the throat and drags the prey deep into the throat of the eel. The "aliens" movie got there design from them.

Anonymous

iguanamouth:

ahh yeah the pharyngeal jaws ! theres actually a BUNCH of fish that have a little pair of em inside, but youre right in that moray eels specifically have a pair that are SUPER mobile compaired to other fish

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whats amazing is just how FAR BACK they are when not in use - cichlid fish are also pretty well known for em, in that they have a less impressive set that works mainly the same way !

Source: iguanamouth

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