Brown-marbled grouper

The brown-marbled grouper or tiger grouper (Epinephelus fuscoguttatus) is a benthic marine fish which belongs to the family Serranidae or also known as the groupers.

Distribution

It is widely distributed throughout the tropical and subtropical waters of the Indo-Pacific, from the eastern coasts of Africa to the oceanic islands of the centre of the Pacific Ocean, Red Sea included. However, it is absent from the Persian Gulf, Hawaii, and French Polynesia.

Like many of the groupers, the brown-marbled grouper lives in rich clear waters close to coral or rocky reefs, lagoons, and external slopes from the surface until 60 metres (200 ft) depth.

Behaviour

This grouper is solitary and sedentary; it defends a well-defined territory, benthic, and is nocturnal, with activity maximal at sunrise and/or at sunset.

It has a quite long life span for a fish and is expected to live until at least 40 years old.

It is a protogynous hermaphrodite, which means the female can evolve into a male during its life.