Hidden Talents Animals Use To Hunt That Show Us Mother Nature Is Cray

Moray Eels Have A Secret Second Jaw

Photo credit: Zina Deretsky/National Science Foundation/Wikipedia

The pharyngeal jaw is present in a few different species, mainly of fish, but the most terrifying is the moray eel. The unique second jaw is hidden away in the eel’s body until it’s ready to attack. Then, when the eel opens it’s mouth, a second jaw comes forward to create a set of teeth scarier than any shark.

If this concept sounds familiar, you may recognize the second set of jaws from the 1979 horror film, Alien. The moray eel’s jaws are meant to prevent fish from swimming into their body and avoiding the teeth, but Alien showed us that the pharyngeal jaw is just as scary to humans.