The Marquesan grouper (''Epinephelus irroratus'') is a species of marine

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fishes, is a class of bony fish. They comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. The ray-finned fishes are so called because their fins are webs of skin supported by bony or h ...

, a

grouper Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Not all serranids are called "groupers"; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name "grouper" is ...

from the subfamily

Epinephelinae Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Not all serranids are called "groupers"; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name "grouper" is ...

which is part of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

Serranidae The Serranidae are a large family of fishes belonging to the order Perciformes. The family contains about 450 species in 65 genera, including the sea basses and the groupers (subfamily Epinephelinae). Although many species are small, in some ca ...

, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found else ...

to French Polynesia. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are open

sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

s, shallow seas, subtidal aquatic beds, and

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. C ...

Description

The Marquesan grouper has a body which has a standard length that is 2.7 to 3.3 times its depth. The dorsal profile of the head is slightly convex. The finely serrated preopercle has a rounded corner which also has a slight indentation, the serrations on the lower edge are slightly enlarged. The upper edge of the gill cover is nearly straight. There are 11 spines in the

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin located on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates within various taxa of the animal kingdom. Many species of animals possessing dorsal fins are not particularly closely related to each other, though through c ...

and 16 soft rays while the anal fin contains 3 spines and 8 soft rays. The

caudal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

is truncate or marginally rounded. This species is reddish-brown in colour with a white dot on each scale leading to the appearance of fine, white speckling. There is a dark reddish-brown stripe on the maxilla. The membrane between the dorsal fine spines is red while the posterior edges of the dorsal, anal, caudal and

pectoral fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as ...

s shows a white line. This species attains a maximum standard length of and has a maximum published weight of .

Distribution

The Marquesan grouper is endemic to the

Marquesas Islands The Marquesas Islands (; french: Îles Marquises or ' or '; Marquesan: ' ( North Marquesan) and ' ( South Marquesan), both meaning "the land of men") are a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia, an overseas collectivity of France in ...

in French Polynesia, records from Japan and the Philippines are thought to be erroneous.

Habitat and biology

The Marquesan grouper is found at depths of where it lives among rocky and coral reefs, other than that little information has been published on the biology of this species.

Taxonomy

The Marquesan grouper was first formally described in 1801 as ''Perca var. irrorata'' by the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

naturalist and

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

pastor

Johann Reinhold Forster Johann Reinhold Forster (22 October 1729 – 9 December 1798) was a German Reformed (Calvinist) pastor and naturalist of partially Scottish descent who made contributions to the early ornithology of Europe and North America. He is best known ...

(1729–1798). This was published in Bloch & Schneider's ''Systema Ichthyologiae'' and the type locality was given as St. Christian Island, now called

Tahuata Tahuata is the smallest of the inhabited Marquesas Islands, in French Polynesia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. It is located 4 km (2.5 mi.) to the south of the western end of Hiva Oa, across the Canal du Bordela ...

, in the Marquesas Islands.

Utilisation

The Marquesan grouper is taken by local fisheries and all fish landed are marketed locally. They are caught using spears, hook and line and traps.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2105091 Fauna of French Polynesia Epinephelus Fauna of the Marquesas Islands Fish described in 1801 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot