Skip to main content

Real-life "Alien" jaws - Darien Satterfield

351,929 Views

1,928 Questions Answered

TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

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.

Pharyngeal jaws used for grinding plant material have teeth of what shape?

About TED-Ed Animations

TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Darien Satterfield
  • Director Zack Williams
  • Narrator Addison Anderson
  • Music Maxwell Sorensen
  • Sound Designer Maxwell Sorensen
  • Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
  • Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Editorial Producer Dan Kwartler
  • Script Editor Alex Gendler
  • Fact-Checker Eden Girma

More from Awesome Nature