Blue Ribbon Eel

The Ribbon Eel (Rhinomuraena quaesita), also known as the leaf-nosed moray eel or bernis eel, is a species of moray eel, the only member of the genus Rhinomuraena. The Indo-Pacific region, which stretches from East Africa to southern Japan, Australia, and French Polynesia, is home to lagoons and reefs where ribbon eels can be found. The heads and anterior bodies of this species, which are widely spread and regularly spotted by divers in Indonesian seas, protrude from cracks in sand and rubble environments from extremely shallow depths to around 60 meters. Despite being typically classified as a member of the moray eel family Muraenidae, it possesses some unique characteristics that have led some to classify it as a member of the Rhinomuraenidae.

The ribbon eel's long, slender body and prominent dorsal fins resemble those of a fabled Chinese dragon. The enlarged anterior nostrils of the ribbon eel make it easy to identify it. They are well recognized for their distinctive jaws, which frequently open quite widely in response to an approaching diver. It is usually believed to be a protandric hermaphrodite (initially male, then changing sex to female), however, this has not yet been verified, based on observable color changes. There are no known examples of color change associated with sex transition in any other moray eel species. In adult males, the black is replaced by blue, while in adult females, the color is totally yellow or yellow with some blue to it. The supposed youngsters and subadults are jet black with a yellow dorsal fin.