Brown Moray

The brown moray is the dominant moray species at Los Gigantes Wall, a Macaronesian and eastern Atlantic endemic that reaches larger body sizes than its more familiar Mediterranean relative and occupies crevices and overhangs across the full depth range of the wall from 8 to well beyond 40 metres. Individuals frequently rest with the anterior third of the body extended from the crevice entrance, their continuous respiratory gaping exposing the teeth in a threat posture that is actually a passive breathing mechanism rather than aggression. As ambush predators of fish, octopus, and crustaceans, brown morays maintain the balance of the reef's mid-trophic community on the wall, and their exceptional abundance at Los Gigantes — multiple individuals visible from a single position — is a direct consequence of the high prey biomass sustained by the northwest coast upwelling.