The Tiger Reef Eel grows up to 140 cm in length. Its serpentine shaped body has a light yellow brown background color covered with a series of irregular dark brown blotches on the sides and top. The head is white and covered with smaller brown dots. Given that Tigers have stripes on them it is hard to understand how this eel was named tigrina. They dorsal fin is only visible towards the rear of the body. Tiger Reef Eel are usually nocturnal feeders and spend the days in crevices in the rocks. Occasionally they will be seen with their heads sticking out the crevices during the day. Even at night they are highly reclusive and disappear into a crevice at the first sight of a light. It is rare to see them out in the open during the day.