click for previous page 1340 Bony Fishes Epinephelus drummondhayi Goode and Bean, 1878 EED Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None. FAO names: En - Speckled hind; Fr - Mérou grivelé; Sp - Mero pintaroja. Diagnostic characters: Body depth subequal to head length, 2.4 to 2.6 times in standard length (for fish 20 to 43 cm standard length). Nostrils subequal; preopercle rounded, evenly serrate. Gill rakers on first arch 9 or 10 on upper limb, 17 or 18 on lower limb, total 26 to 28. Dorsal fin with 11 spines and 15 or 16 soft rays, the membrane incised between the anterior spines; anal fin with 3 spines and 9 soft rays; caudal fin trun- cate or slightly emarginate, the corners acute; pectoral-fin rays 18. Scales strongly ctenoid, about 125 lateral-scale series; lateral-line scales 72 to 76. Colour: adults (larger than 33 cm) dark reddish brown, densely covered with small pearly white spots; juveniles (less than 20 cm) bright yellow, covered with small bluish white spots. Size: Maximum about 110 cm; maximum weight 30 kg. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Adults inhabit offshore rocky bottoms in depths of 25 to 183 m but are most common between 60 and 120 m.Females mature at 4 or 5 years of age (total length 45 to 60 cm).Spawning oc- curs from July to September, and a large female may produce up to 2 million eggs at 1 spawning. Back-calculated total lengths for fish aged 1 to 15 years are 19, 32, 41, 48, 53, 57, 61, 65, 68, 71, 74, 77, 81, 84, and 86 cm; the maximum age attained is at least 25 years, and the largest specimen measured was 110 cm. The weight/length relationship isW=1.1X10-8L3.073 for W in kg and L (total length) in mm.The von Bertalanffy growth equation is L t = 967(1-e- 0.13 ( t+1.01)). Adults feed on a variety of fishes and invertebrates, including shrimps, crabs, squid, and octopus. An impor- tant species in the recreational and commercial fisheries of the southeastern USA and also in the grouper fishery of the Campeche Bank off Yucatán. Mainly caught with hook-and-line, but some might also be taken in traps, trawls, and on bottom-set longlines. Distribution: Bermuda, North Carolina to Florida Keys, Gulf of Mexico. Reports of speck- led hind from Cuba and the Bahamas are unsub- stantiated. Remarks: The speckled hind is also known as ‘Kitty Mitchell’ in the Gulf of Mexico region; and the Mexican name is ‘lenteja’. Perciformes: Percoidei: Serranidae 1341 Epinephelus flavolimbatus Poey, 1865 EEL Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None. FAO names: En - Yellowedge grouper; Fr - Mérou aile jaune; Sp - Mero aleta amarilla. Diagnostic characters: Body depth distinctly less than head length, 2.7 to 2.9 in standard length (for fish 13 to 64 cm standard length).Eye diameter equal to or greater than interorbital width in fish less than 45 cm standard length. Nostrils subequal. Gill rakers on first arch 8 or 9 on upper limb, 15 to 17 on lower limb, total 23 to 25. Dorsal fin with 11 spines and 13 to 15 soft rays, third or fourth spine longest, and fin membrane slightlly incised between anterior spines; anal fin with 3 spines and 9 soft rays; rear margin of caudal fin convex in fish less than 30 cm standard length, truncate or even slightly concave in larger fish; pec- toral-fin rays 18. Preopercle angular, with serrae at angle distinctly enlarged and, in large fish, co- alesced into a flat serrate lobe. Lateral body scales ctenoid (rough); lateral scale series 82 to 99; lateral-line scales about 65. Colour: head and body buff or greyish brown, whitish ventrally; margins of dorsal and pecto- ral fins, and sometimes anal and caudal fins yellow; a prominent blue line from eye to corner of preopercle. Ju- veniles less than 20 cm standard length, with pearly spots arranged in a grid of 4 longitudinal rows and 7 vertical columns and a dark brown saddle blotch on caudal peduncle; dorsal fin with broad yellow margin; cau- dal fin white; anal and pelvic fins blackish; black saddle on peduncle (if present) ending abruptly at lateral line; this spotted juvenile pattern gradually disappears with growth and is faint to absent in fish larger than 30 cm standard length. Adults generally immaculate, but sometimes (momentarily) they display the white-spotted grid pattern. Size: Maximum about 115 cm; maximum weight 20 kg. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: A deep-water species occurring in rocky areas and on sand/mud bottoms in depths of 64 to 370 m. On soft bottoms, often seen in or near trenches or burrow-like excavations. Females at- tain maturity at 53 to 60 cm total length and are thought to change sex at about 75 cm. Spawning occurs in the Gulf of Mexico from May to September. The maximum age is at least 20 years. The relationship of weight to length for yellowedge grouper in the eastern Gulf of Mexico is W = 5.37 x 10-8 standard length2.872 (n = 472, r2 = 0.99) where W is whole weight in kg and standard length is in millimetres. This species feeds on a wide vari- ety of invertebrates (mainly brachyuran crabs) and fishes. One of the 2 most important species of groupers in the deep-water longline fishery in the eastern Gulf of Mexico; also of some impor- tance in sport and commercial fisheries off the southeastern coast of the USA and along the coast of Central and South America. Distribution: North Carolina to southern Brazil, including Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean; not re- ported from Bermuda. Remarks: The local name in Mexico is “’cherna del alto’. 1342 Bony Fishes Epinephelus guttatus (Linnaeus, 1758) EEU Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None. FAO Names: En - Red hind; Fr - Mérou couronné; Sp - Mero colorado. Diagnostic characters: Body depth distinctly less than head length, 2.7 to 3.1 in standard length (for fish 17 to 38 cm standard length). Gill rakers on first arch 8 or 9 on upper limb and 16 to 18 on lower limb, total 24 to 26. Dorsal fin with 11 spines and 15 or 16 soft rays, the third or fourth spine longest, the interspinous mem- branes incised and produced into a short flag behind tip of each spine; anal fin with 3 spines and 8 soft rays; pectoral-fin rays 16 to 18; rear edge of caudal fin convex. Preopercle rounded, evenly serrate; rear nostril larger than front nostril. Scales ctenoid, lateral scale series 92 to 104. Colour: ground colour buff, greenish white, or pale reddish brown, the head and body covered with bright red spots which be- come reddish brown dorsally; spinous dorsal fin olive, with yellow flags at tips of spines; soft dorsal, caudal, and anal fins olivaceous, with a broad blackish submarginal band and narrow pale edge; pectoral fins pale or- ange-red with darker red spots on base; pelvic fins coloured like body but darker distally and along leading edge. Size: Maximum 76 cm; maximum weight 8.3 kg. Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Shallow reefs and rocky bottoms in depths of 2 to 100 m. Red hind feed mainly on crabs (40%) and fishes (21%). Females mature at 22 to 24 cm total length, and change sex at 28 to 38 cm total length.On the outer reef in 20 m off the south coast of Puerto Rico, spawning of fish in aggregations occurred during the full moon in January and February. Ripe females were recognized by their swollen abdo- mens and colour pattern of dark spots on a white background; males displayed a darker mottled pattern, with an area of dark vertical bars or squares on the body above the anal fin. Females rested on or close to the bot- tom, while males patrolled an area that included 1 to 5 females and defended this territory from other males. On 2 occasions, spawning was initiated by a female swimming about 0.5 m up off the bottom and being joined by a male; gametes were released without any upward rush or rapid movement. In one case, another female joined the pair above the bottom and spawned with them. The transparent eggs are buoyant and usually con- tain a single oil globule. For larvae reared in the laboratory, hatching occurred 27 h after fertilization at 26.5° C; mortality increased greatly after 6 to 7 days, and no larva survived through metamorphosis. Fecundity varies from 90 000 eggs for a 26 cm (total length) fish to over 3 million eggs in a 45 cm (total length) fe- male. Although not as large as some other groupers, it is the most important species in the Caribbean grouper fishery. Caught with hook-and-line, traps, and spears. Distribution: Bermuda, North Carolina to Brazil, including Gulf of Mexico and the West In- dies. Remarks: In the West Indies, the red hind is also called ‘cabrilla morja’ or ‘strawberry grouper’; in Venezuela, it is known as ‘tofia’. Perciformes: Percoidei: Serranidae 1343 Epinephelus itajara (Lichtenstein, 1822) EET Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: Promicrops itajara (Lichtenstein, 1822) / None. FAO names: En - Goliath grouper (AFS: Jewfish); Fr - Mérou géant; Sp - Mero guasa. Diagnostic characters: Body robust, oblong, the greatest width equals half or more of body depth, which is less than head length (in fish 15 to 160 cm). Head extremely broad; interorbital flat and very wide, its width equals eye diameter in fish 10 to 15 cm standard length, is distinctly greater than eye diameter in fish 18 to 30 cm standard length, and 2 to 5 times greater than eye diameter in fish 30 to 160 cm standard length.