Battle of the Titans: Sea Snake versus Moray Eel

[Soakedlontra]

I don't know much about sea snakes. I have heard that they are highly poisonous. This video shows Nature at its worse but the ending is rather amazing. I have never seen anything like it:

[video=youtube;yS0X5JqFiZQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yS0X5JqFiZQ[/video]

 

[miked]

Great video, but the stuff of nightmares.

 

[supergaijin]

Very cool indeed... in a slow-motion kind of way.

 

[whaylonsmithers]

That is really cool. Did you see any sign of weather the eel died afterward? I presume snakes are toxic to eels, but it took off so energetically I wonder if it was injected with anything?

 

[AfterDark]

I think the snake had bit the eel, stunned it, started to eat it but couldn't get it done before the venom wore off.
The snake seemed to go from sluggish to more active as the video progressed.

 

[Soakedlontra]

That is really cool. Did you see any sign of weather the eel died afterward? I presume snakes are toxic to eels, but it took off so energetically I wonder if it was injected with anything?

I have no idea. I was not there. I found the video on Google while I was trying to identify some eels. I thought that sea snakes had a deadly poison so how the eel was able to be still alive after such a long period of time? Maybe it just paralyses the victim...

---------- Post added May 2nd, 2013 at 07:42 AM ----------

Great video, but the stuff of nightmares.

It makes me think of monster movies...

 

[boulderjohn]

The snake venom is extremely potent--I am surprised that the eel survived.

Notice that as soon as the eel escapes, the snake heads rapidly for the surface. I am going to hazard a guess that the snake intentionally released the eel when it realized it was not going to get the job done before needing to get more air. Remember that snakes do not have gills and must return to the surface to breathe.

Sea snakes were land animals that returned to the sea to hunt. Venomous snakes normally strike and then retreat to allow the venom to work, so they don't have to fight an active animal for their meal. Sea snakes evolved an extremely potent poison because they don't have a lot of time to wait for it to do the job.