Epinephelus

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Epinephelus
Dark giant grouper (Epinephelus lanceolatus)

Dark giant grouper ( Epinephelus lanceolatus )

Systematics
Spinefish (Acanthopterygii)
Perch relatives (Percomorphaceae)
Order : Perch-like (Perciformes)
Family : Grouper (Epinephelidae)
Subfamily : Epinephelinae
Genre : Epinephelus
Scientific name
Epinephelus
Bloch , 1793

Epinephelus is a genus of groupers (Epinephelidae). The fish live near the coast in tropical and subtropical regions of all oceans.

features

Epinephelus species have an elongated, massive, cylindrical, or laterally compressed body. Depending on the species, they can reach lengths of twelve centimeters up to 2.70 meters. The massive head can reach a third to almost half the standard length (distance between the gill cover and the caudal fin root). The front part of the jaws can have enlarged "dog teeth", although some of the species are rather small. The palatine bone is also dentate.

The dorsal fin usually has eleven hard rays (ten in E. analogus ) and twelve to 19 soft rays. The base of the soft ray part of the dorsal fin is no longer than the base of the hard ray part. The anal fin has three hard and seven to ten soft rays. The pectoral fins are rounded, the central rays are the longest. The caudal fin is rounded, straight or is slightly indented. The scales are smooth or ridge scales .

Way of life

Most Epinephelus species live in rocky and coral reefs , some species ( E. aeneus , E. bruneus , and E. areolatus ) also live on soft and sandy soils. Usually depths of 10 to 200 meters are inhabited, only a few species inhabit greater depths of up to 525 meters. The two largest species, E. itajara and E. lanceolatus , both of which are more than two meters long and weigh over 400 kg, often swim in estuaries and harbors.

Epinephelus species feed on fish and larger invertebrates, especially crustaceans. The food is looked for in the reef or on the ground. E. undulosus , which has many long gill spines, eats pelagic tunicates .

Reproduction

Reproduction has only been studied in a few species. The Epinephelus species appear to be protogynous hermaphrodites . In some species, however, there are males that are smaller than the females, so that they may not have gone through a previous female stage. Also, not all females seem to change sex as they age.

distribution

Most Epinephelus species live in the western Indo-Pacific , eight live in the eastern Pacific , eleven in the western Atlantic and nine in the eastern Atlantic and the Mediterranean . Two live in both the eastern Pacific and the western Atlantic ( E. itajara and E. mystacinus ). Epinephelus itajara , often found in estuaries, likely reached the eastern Pacific through the Panama Canal .

fishing

Epinephelus species are some of the most important fish caught in tropical fisheries; the meat fetched high prices. E. coioides and E. malabaricus are kept in aquaculture .

species

After an extensive revision published in September 2018, 77 species are now included in the genera Epinephelus . Epinephelus is the most species-rich genus of groupers.

Species incertae sedis :

literature

  • Dieter Eichler, Robert F. Myers: Korallenfische Indopazifik , Jahr-Verlag GmbH & Co., ISBN 3-86132-225-0
  • Ewald Lieske, Robert F. Myers: Coral fish of the world . Year Top Special Verlag Hamburg, ISBN 3-86132-112-2
  • Hans A. Baensch / Robert A. Patzner: Mergus Sea Water Atlas Volume 7 Perciformes (perch-like) . Mergus-Verlag, Melle, ISBN 3-88244-107-0
  • Phillip C. Heemstra: Groupers of the World (Family Serranidae, Subfamily Epinephelinae) An Annotated and Illustrated Catalog of the Grouper, Rockcod, Hind, Coral Grouper and Lyretail Species . FAO Species Catalog for Fishery Purposes. Vol. 16. FAO Rome 1993; Pages 69-251. ( Full PDF )

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Ma, KY & Craig, MT: An Inconvenient Monophyly: An Update on the Taxonomy of the Groupers (Epinephelidae). Copeia 106 (3): 443-456. 2018. doi: 10.1643 / CI-18-055
  2. ↑ Frable, BW, Tucker, SJ & Walker, HJ, Jr. (2018): A new species of grouper, Epinephelus craigi (Perciformes: Epinephelidae), from the South China Sea. Ichthyological Research: [1-10]. First Online: November 09, 2018.
  3. ↑ Johnson, JW & Wilmer, JW (2019): Epinephelus fuscomarginatus (Perciformes: Epinephelidae), a new species of grouper from off the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Zootaxa, 4674 (3): 329-348.

Web links

Commons : Epinephelus  - collection of images, videos and audio files