Discover the adaptation of the pharyngeal jaw, a secondary set of jaws that allow fish to capture and eat their prey at the same time.



After stalking a cuttlefish, a moray eel finally pounces. As the eel snags the mollusk in its teeth, its prey struggles to escape. But before it can wiggle away, a second set of teeth lunge from the eel’s throat. This adaptation is called a pharyngeal jaw, and is one of the most common adaptations under the sea. Darien Satterfield shares how this incredible skeletal mechanism works.

Lesson by Darien Satterfield, directed by Zack Williams.

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Animator's website: https://zackwilliams.work
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