Brownspotted grouper
Brownspotted grouper | |
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Epinephelus chlorostigma from New Caledonia | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Chordata |
Class: | Actinopterygii |
Order: | Perciformes |
Family: | Serranidae |
Subfamily: | Epinephelinae |
Tribe: | Epinephelini |
Genus: | Epinephelus |
Species: | E. chlorostigma
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Binomial name | |
Epinephelus chlorostigma (Valenciennes, 1828)
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Synonyms[2] | |
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The brownspotted grouper (Epinephelus chlorostigma), also known as the brown spotted reef cod, brown-spotted rockcod, coral grouper or honeycomb cod, is a species of marine
Epinephelinae which is part of the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. It has an Indo-Pacific distribution but in the northern Indian Ocean this distribution is discontinuous. It forms part of a species complex with two closely related species in the genus Epinephelus
.
Description
The brownspotted grouper has a body which has a
pectoral fins. The lateral line has 48-53 scales.[3] This is a pale species of grouper which is covered in a dense pattern of small brown spots apart from the lower part of the head, chest and lower abdomen which lack spotting. They can sometimes temporarily show large dark spots which overlay the normal body pattern.[3] The maximum recorded total length attained is 80 centimetres (31 in), although a more common length is 50 centimetres (20 in), and the maximum published weight is 7 kilograms (15 lb).[2]
Distribution
The brownspotted grouper has an Indo-Pacific range which extends from the
Western Pacific Ocean where it extends north to southern Japan south to New Caledonia and east to American Samoa and Fiji. There are gaps in this distribution and there are no confirmed records from the Comoros, the continental shelf between Oman and Cambodia, the East Indies, Taiwan and mainland Australia. The claims of this species from the Persian Gulf are considered to be misidentifications of Epinephelus polylepis.[3] In Australia this species is found only around offshore reefs off north western Australia in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.[4]
Habitat and biology
The brownspotted grouper occurs over a wide range of habitats such as seagrass beds and outer reef slopes, as well as over mud bottoms. It is a solitary species which is a predator on small fishes and
protogynous hermaphrodite and the change in sex from female to male takes place between 35–45 centimetres (14–18 in), although not all of the females undergo this change. The adults form spawning aggregations.[2]
Parasites
As other fish, the Epinephelus cholorostigme has many
parasites, including nematodes in its intestine, such as Cucullanus epinepheli,[6] and several species of monogeneans on its gills,[7][8][9] including Pseudorhabdosynochus cyanopodus, Pseudorhabdosynochus epinepheli, Pseudorhabdosynochus podocyanus, Pseudorhabdosynochus stigmosus, Pseudorhabdosynochus exoticoides[9] and the digenean Neidhartia lochepintade in its intestine.[5] This parasite species was named for the New Caledonian
name of the fish, "loche pintade".
Taxonomy
The brownspotted grouper was first formally
type locality given as the Seychelles.[10] E. chlorostigma is a member of a species complex comprising three species which are characterised by having a truncate or emarginate caudal fin, a body covered in dense spotting apart from their underparts, a slightly angular preopercle with slightly enlarged serrations at the angle, a straight upper edge to the gill cover and a similar count of gill rakers. The three species are E. chlorostigma, E. gabriellae and E. polylepsis.[3] The fish in the Red Sea, northwestern Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden are now recognized as a valid species, Epinephelus geoffroyi.[11]
Utilisation
The brownspotted grouper is targeted by fisheries throughout its distribution.[1]
References
- ^ . Retrieved 19 November 2021.
- ^ a b c d Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2019). "Epinephelus chlorostigma" in FishBase. December 2019 version.
- ^ ISBN 92-5-103125-8.
- ^ a b Bray, D.J. (2018). "Epinephelus chlorostigma". Fishes of Australia. Museums Victoria. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ PMID 24351242.
- PMID 28402282.
- S2CID 36351344.
- PMID 22326703.
- ^ S2CID 9467410.
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Serranus chlorostigma". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
- ^ Eschmeyer, William N.; Fricke, Ron & van der Laan, Richard (eds.). "Species in the genus Epinephelus". Catalog of Fishes. California Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 6 July 2019.
External links
- Media related to Epinephelus chlorostigma at Wikimedia Commons