• Overview
• Interesting Facts
• Common Names
• Description
• Biology
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• Bibliography
• More Info
• Notes

Overview

Family : Sea basses: groupers and fairy basslets ; Occurs from the shoreline to at least 90 m depth. Usually close to caves (Ref. 9710). Juveniles are common in seagrass beds . Diet comprises mainly of fishes (54%) and crabs (23%) and lesser amounts of other crustaceans and mollusks. It is solitary and mainly diurnal ; but may sometimes form schools. Spawns near the new moon with up to 30,000 aggregating at certain spawning sites (Ref. 9710). The least wary and most friendly of all the groupers (Ref. 5226). Heavily fished and vulnerable to overfishing , particularly when migrating or aggregating to spawn (Ref. 9710). The most important commercial grouper in the West Indies. Marketed fresh, mostly between 2 to 10 kg (Ref. 3708).

Endangered

Interesting Facts

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Family Serranidae

Distribution: Tropical and temperate oceans. Some enter freshwater . Operculum bearing 3 spines - a main spine with one below and one above it. Lateral line complete and continuous, not reaching onto caudal fin (lacking in one species). Dorsal fin may be notched , with 7-12 spines. Three spines on anal fin. Caudal fin usually rounded , truncate , or lunate ; rarely forked . Tip of maxilla exposed even with mouth closed . No scaly axillary pelvic process . One spine on pelvic fin; soft rays 5. Branchiostegal rays usually 7. Vertebrae 24-26. Monoecious with some functional hermaphrodites ; groupers are protogynous hermaphrodites. Anthiinae are mostly small colorful planktivores feeding primarily on tiny crustaceans and fish eggs . They change sex from females to a few dominant males. Despite their attractive colors they need zooplankton as food and are thus not well suited for aquariums . Groupers attain up to 3 m maximum length and weights of up to 400 kg . They are bottom-dwelling predators and highly commercial food fish . Groupers are hardy aquarium fish, but grow rapidly. Grammistinae get their name from a bitter tasting skin toxin , grammistin, which can kill other animals in an aquarium. They feed on crustaceans and fishes .The family Serranidae belongs to the Class Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) and the Order Perciformes. It contains 62 genera and 449 species. It may be found in Marine , Brackish , and Freshwater environments and is primarily Marine. Many members of this family are used in the aquarium trade. Reproductively, most members of this family are nonguarders. The main mode of swimming of adult fish in this family is subcarangiform. Compared with other fish, the activity level of this family tends to be normal. Members of this family have been dated back to the Eocene epoch of the Tertiary period. Etymology of this family name : Latin, serranus = derived from saw, fish saw. 1803

Physical Description

Habitat

This grouper is common on offshore rocky bottoms and coral reefs throughout the Caribbean region. They occur at a depth range extending to at least 295 feet (90 m ), preferring to rest near or close to the bottom. Juveniles are found closer to shore in seagrass beds that offer a suitable nursery habitat . Nassau groupers are typically solitary and diurnal , however, they may occasionally form schools. When threatened by predators , this fish can camouflage itself, blending in with the surrounding rocks and corals . Groupers are frequent visitors to wrasse cleaning stations . At these stations , cleaner wrasses pick parasites and dead tissues from the grouper's gills and body. The grouper will open its mouth in a non-threatening manner, attracting cleaner fish to enter its mouth to remove parasites.

Typically found in water with a depth of 0 to -5,790 meters (0 to -18,996 feet).Mean = -1,478.380 meters (-4,850.328 feet), Standard Deviation = 2,895.680 based on 21 observations. Ocean depth information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre.

Biome: Saltwater . Reef-associated .

Ecology: Occurs to at least 130 m and is most abundant in clear water with high relief coral reefs or rocky substrate (Sadovy and Ekland 1999) Post-settlement fish inhabit Laurencia macroalgal clumps , seagrass beds and coral (Eggleston 1995, Dahlgren 1998).Generation time is estimated at 9-10 years, based on average fish size from an unexploited aggregation in Belize and the growth curve from five Cayman Island spawning aggregations (Sadovy and Eklund 1999). (Ref. 54399)

List of Habitats : 9.1 Marine Neritic - Pelagic 9.7 Marine Neritic - Macroalgal/Kelp 9.8 Marine Neritic - Coral Reef 9.9 Marine Neritic - Seagrass (Submerged)

Biology

Diet

As a carnivorous predator , the Nassau grouper has a diet that consists mainly of fish, shrimps, crabs, lobsters, and octopuses. Prey fish include parrotfishes , wrasses , damselfishes , squirrelfishes , snappers , and grunts . This clever fish patiently waits in hiding, utilizing its ability to camouflage , until it pounces on its prey. By opening its mouth and dilating the gill covers to draw water in, groupers generally engulf their prey hole in one quick motion. An interesting note , as a friendly, unwary fish, if offered food by divers it will repeatedly return searching for more food handouts.

Reproduction

The Nassau grouper forms large spawning aggregations from a few dozen to over 100,000 individuals. These aggregations form in depth of 65-130 ft (20-40 m ) on the outer shelf near the full moon during the winter months. During the spawning event, most fish display the bicolored pattern and swim near the bottom . Some females remain in the barred color pattern and become very dark as mating approaches. A group of bicolored males swims in circles near the female upon sunset. Courtship behavior includes vertical spirals , short vertical runs followed by crowding together and rapid dispersal , and horizontal runs near the bottom. Release of gametes is initiated by the female moving in a rapid forward and upward direction . The eggs are released by the female, followed by the release of sperm by all the following bicolored males as well as further release of eggs by some bicolored females. This is known as the "spawning rush". Fertilization occurs by chance in the open waters , large spawning aggregations further improve these chances. One such aggregation was reported in the Bahamas which included as many as 100,000 fish.

Groupers are protogynous hermaphrodites . After spawning as a female for one or more years, the grouper changes sex, functioning as a male during future spawning events. Individuals of the Nassau grouper have been discovered to be male without previously going through a female stage and are smaller than the secondary males . It is believed by some that the sex change is triggered when the fish aggregate in preparation for spawning. It is difficult to distinguish different species of grouper larvae from one another, since what information is known about egg and larval development is general. The eggs hatch into pelagic larvae that drift along with the currents for a month or so, prior to becoming juveniles . The larvae are characterized by kite-shaped bodies and elongated second dorsal spines. Juveniles settle at lengths of approximately 32mm, residing in vegetated areas near coral clumps . At 120-150mm in length, the juvenile Nassau groupers move out from vegetated areas to surrounding patch reefs .

Behavior

Predators:

Predators of the Nassau grouper include large fish such as barracuda (Sphyraena barracuda), king mackerel (Scomberomorus cavalla), moray eels (Gymnothorax spp. ), and other groupers. The sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus ) and the great hammerhead shark (Sphyrna mokarran) are also known to feed on groupers.

Parasites:

Nassau groupers are host to a variety of parasitic organisms including isopods located in the nostrils, larval tapeworms in the viscera , and nematodes in the ovaries. These nematodes can have negative impact on the numbers of eggs produced by female Nassau groupers. The impact of these parasites on the health of the host is relatively unknown. Nassau groupers also frequent "cleaning stations" on coral reefs. At these stations , gobies and shrimps remove isopods from the bodies, fins , mouths , and gills of these groupers and other fish.

Sound types : grunts . Sound organ: swim bladder firmly encased in peritoneum, teeth.

Taxonomy

Unambiguous Synonyms

1. Anthias cherna Bloch and Schneider, 1801
2. Anthias striatus Bloch, 1792
3. Serranus gymnopareius Valenciennes, 1828
4. Serranus striatus (Bloch, 1792)
5. Sparus chrysomelas Lacepède, 1802

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: March 16, 2002.

Epinephelus striatus was first described by the German Ichthyologist Marcus Eliese Bloch in 1792. The genus name comes from the Greek Epinephelus meaning clouded over, referring to the membrane of another species of grouper while striatus is Latin, referring to the striped color pattern .

Similar Species

Members of the genus Epinephelus

There are approximately 166 species in this genus. Here are just 100 of them:

E. malabaricus · E. acanthistius (Grouper) · Mycteroperca rubra · E. adcensionis · E. adscencionis · E. adscenscionis · E. adscensionis (Butterfish) · E. adscensionus · E. adsencionis · E. adsencionus · E. adsensianis · E. aeneus (Grouper) · E. aereolatus · E. aerolatus · Alphestes immaculatus · E. akaara (Garrupa) · E. albomarginatus (Captain Fine) · E. costae · E. amblycephalus (Banded Grouper) · E. analogus (Cabrilla) · E. andersoni (Brown-Spotted Rockcod) · E. apua · E. areolatus (Areolate Grouper) · E. awoara (Banded Grouper) · E. bilobatus (Frostback Rockcod) · E. bimaculatus · E. bleekeri (Bleeker's Grouper) · E. bonaci · E. bontoides (Dusky Rock Cod) · E. bruneus (Kelp Grouper) · E. caninus (Dogtooth Grouper) · E. carponotatus · E. chabaudi (Modest Rockcod) · E. chlorocephalus (Tonga Grouper) ·