family Muraenidae

Body elongate, muscular and somewhat compressed, scaleless. Head massive, its occipital region somewhat elevated; anterior nostril tubular at frontof snout; posterior nostril opening nearupper anterior eye margin. Teeth usuallystrong, caninform to blunt molaris, injaws and on vomer. Gill openings restricted to small roundish lateral apertures. Dorsal and anal fins included in adermal fold, confluent with caudal fin;pectoral and pelvic fins absent. Lateralline reduced to the first two, three orfour pores in branchial region.

Inhabit shallow waters (rocks orcoarse sand) or rather deep coral reefs.Active mainly at night. Reproduction inwarm hydrological season; larvae lepto-cephalus with metamorphosis.