Northwest Dive Club

At Sund Rock yesterday, we saw a wolf eel laying out in the open along the south wall at ~60 ft. He was definitely still breathing but didn't react much to us. It had some visible injuries on its mouth. And then when I looked more closely, there was a cluster of something growing on the roof of its mouth. They look like hydroids maybe? What exactly are they and under what circumstances would they start growing in a wolf eel's mouth? How bad shape was this wolf eel in?

It looks a little bit like an Urchin, perhaps it's go stuck and has gotten a bit fuzzier as it degrades?

I tried to upload another photo but the forum is rejecting all my pictures right now...

Interesting sighting Derek, especially the hydroids in mouth.

Dave -- Sometimes photos that have too much metadata fail to upload. When exporting from lightroom, make sure to unselect "All metadata"

-Eric

I think they are hydroids! I zoomed in more and it's pretty clear.

Was that lunch or is it growing in there? Is this something you've seen before?

Gross and awesome and sad!!! Wow poor baby!!!!