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Writer's pictureAquasub Buceo

Knowing a little about the big reef fish!!

Known as the reef skipper, its most common name is Grouper or Grouper, this large fish patrols the bottoms and the reef to maintain a balance, catching and eating other species. However, it covers more than 400 species.


Given the variety and different adaptations throughout the planet, there are specimens of the genus Epinephelus and Mycteroperca, both belonging to the subfamily Epinephelinae, of the Serranidae family. Due to this great variety (about 400 species) providing the scientific name of our guest is complicated, but since they are the closest to us, we will stick with Epinephelus marginatus, the Mediterranean grouper. In Spanish, it is known as Mero or Cherna, however in English, it is known as “Grouper” or grouper. We will discuss their nature and behavior in more detail, but this common name does not correspond to their way of being, but to their linguistic heritage. It is believed that the origin of this name comes from the Portuguese, Garoupa, a name also inherited from some indigenous people in South America.

Tips:

They are born female 2. Its average size is 1 meter and 40 kilos in weight. 3. They generally live alone and only meet during the breeding season. 4. Females lay about 300,000 eggs for every kilo of weight. 5. They achieve sexual maturity between 3 to 5 years of life.urez sexual entre los 3 a 5 años de vida.


The Grouper has a robust body with a large head in which globular eyes and large jaws stand out. They are not prepared for swimming long distances, nor for swimming fast, generally staying in rocky areas. It has strong jaws, and through its mouth and gills, it has a complex suction system through which it sucks in its victims to extract them from their hiding places. The groupers also use these powerful muscles in their gills to, in case of danger, use them as an anchor and fix themselves inside the cave where they are, making it almost impossible to remove them from there by force. Generally, the maximum size of these specimens is usually around one and a half meters in length, and can weigh 40 kilos, although specimens of more than 2 meters in size, more than 200 kilos, have been found. All groupers are born female, and reach sexual maturity around 3 or 5 years old. Normally, a male grouper has a harem of about 15 females, and when the male disappears, due to natural death or fishing, a female transforms into a male, taking charge of the harem. Females deposit around 334,000 oocytes for every kilo of weight. A tactic when there is an overpopulation of male groupers is that the new ones, instead of growing, decrease in size to go unnoticed and thus be able to fertilize the females from other harems. It is a solitary fish, which lives in rocky places where there are plenty of holes and nooks where it can take shelter. It is rare to find them forming schools or schools, but occasionally they can be seen this way. It feeds on other smaller fish, and some crustaceans, although its main dish is octopuses. Its meat is highly appreciated gastronomically speaking, and it is not usually frozen for consumption, but is usually served fresh in coastal towns. The Colombian Pacific is one of the ideal places to dive with groupers, destinations such as Gorgona Island, Cabo Corrientes, Ensenada de Utria, Bahia Solano, we accompany you on the next excursion!!!


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