Citizendia

For other meanings, see Grouper (disambiguation).

Groupers
Malabar grouper, Epinephelus malabaricus
Malabar grouper, Epinephelus malabaricus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Actinopterygii
Order:Perciformes
Family:Serranidae
Subfamily:Epinephelinae
Genera

Acanthistius
Alphestes
Anyperidon
Caprodon
Cephalopholis
Cromileptes
Dermatolepis
Epinephelus
Gonioplectrus
Gracila
Hypoplectrodes Liopropoma
Mycteroperca
Niphon
Paranthias
Plectropomus
Saloptia
Triso
Variola

Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Malabar Grouper, also referred to as the Estuary Cod, Greasy Cod, Spotted River Cod or Estuary Rock Cod, is an Indo-Pacific species Chordates ( Phylum Chordata) are a group of Animals that includes the Vertebrates together with several closely related Invertebrates The Actinopterygii (the plural form of Actinopterygius) comprise the class of the ray-finned fishes. The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, include about 40% of all bony Fish and are the largest order of vertebrates. Serranidae is a large family of Fishes belonging to the order Perciformes. Epinephelus is a Genus of Groupers They are large sea fish Members of this genus may also be called a Mero. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic In Biological classification, family ( Latin Serranidae is a large family of Fishes belonging to the order Perciformes. The Perciformes, also called the Percomorphi or Acanthopteri, include about 40% of all bony Fish and are the largest order of vertebrates.

Not all serranids are called groupers; the family also includes the sea basses. Sea bass refers to many fish species of various families including Black sea bass ( Centropristis striata, in the family Serranidae) The common name grouper is usually given to fish in one of two large genera: Epinephelus and Mycteroperca. A genus (plural genera from Γένος Latin genus "descent family type gender" is a low-level Taxonomic In addition, the species classified in the small genera Anyperidon, Cromileptes, Dermatolepis, Gracila, Saloptia and Triso are also called groupers. Fish classified in the genus Plectropomus are referred to as coral groupers. These genera are all classified in the subfamily Epiphelinae. However, some of the hamlets (genus Alphestes), the hinds (genus Cephalopholis), the lyretails (genus Variola) and some other small genera (Gonioplectrus, Niphon, Paranthias) are also in this subfamily, and occasional species in other serranid genera have common names involving the word "grouper". Nonetheless, the word "groupers" on its own is usually taken as meaning the subfamily Epinephelinae.

The word "grouper" comes from the word for the fish, garoupa, in the Russian dialect of the Enchained Forest region of Siberia, and not from the English word group. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving

In New Zealand and Australia, the name for several species of Grouper is referred to as Groper, as in the Epinephelus lanceolatus Queensland Groper. The giant grouper ( Epinephelus lanceolatus) also known as the brindle bass, brown spotted cod, bumblebee grouper and as the In the Middle East, the fish is known as Hammour, and is widely eaten, especially in the Gulf Region.

Groupers are teleosts, typically having a stout body and a large mouth. Teleostei is one of three infraclasses in class Actinopterygii, the ray-finned fishes They are not built for long-distance fast swimming. They can be quite large, and lengths over a meter and weights up to 100 kg are not uncommon, though obviously in such a large group species vary considerably. They swallow prey rather than biting pieces off it. They do not have much tooth on the edges of their jaws, but they have heavy crushing tooth plates inside the pharynx. The pharynx (plural pharynges) is the part of the Neck and Throat situated immediately Posterior to (behind the Mouth and Nasal They habitually eat fish, octopus, crab, and lobster. Fish are aquatic Vertebrate animals that are typically ectothermic (previously Cold-blooded) covered with scales, and equipped with two The Crabs are decapod Crustaceans of the infraorder Brachyura, which typically have a very short projecting "tail" (βραχύ / brachy Clawed lobsters compose a family ( Nephropidae, sometimes also Homaridae) of large marine Crustaceans Lobsters are economically important as They lie in wait, rather than chasing in open water. According to the film-maker Graham Ferreira, there is at least one record, from Mozambique, of a human being killed by one of these fish. Graham Ferreira is a South African Journalist and film maker After leaving school in the early sixties he joined the South African Police Force but dissatified

Their mouth and gills form a powerful sucking system that sucks their prey in from a distance. A gill is an anatomical structure found in many aquatic organisms They also use their mouth to dig into sand in order to form their shelters under big rocks, jetting it out through their gills. Their gill muscles are so powerful, that it is nearly impossible to pull them out of their cave if they feel attacked and extend them in order to lock themselves in. Muscle (from Latin musculus, diminutive of mus "mouse" is contractile tissue of the body and is derived from the

There is some research indicating that roving coral groupers (Plectropomus pessuliferus) sometimes cooperate with giant morays in hunting[1]. Moray eels are large cosmopolitan Eels of the family Muraenidae.

Most fish spawn between May and August. They are protogynous hermaphrodite, i. Dichogamy is the separation in time of gender expression in a hermaphroditic organism a characteristic of some Fishes, Gastropods, and most Flowering plants A hermaphrodite is an organism having both male and female reproductive organs e. the young are predominantly female but transform into males as they grow larger. They grow about a kilogram per year. Generally they are adolescent until they reach three kilograms, when they become female. At about 10 to 12 kg they turn to male. Usually, males have a harem of three to fifteen females in the broader region. Polygyny (which comes from neo- Greek: πολύ poly "many" + γυνή gyny "woman" is a specific form of Polygamy, In the rare case that no male exists close by, the largest female turns faster. Most males look much wilder and bigger than females, even if they happen to be smaller (compare bull to cow, or rooster to chicken, or lion to lioness). Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family Cattle, colloquially referred to as cows, are domesticated Ungulates a member of the Subfamily Bovinae of the family A rooster (also called a cock or chanticleer) is a male Chicken ( Gallus gallus) the female being called a Hen. The chicken ( Gallus gallus, sometimes G gallus domesticus) is a domesticated Fowl which is traditionally believed to have descended from The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera. The lion ( Panthera leo) is a member of the family Felidae and one of four Big cats in the Genus Panthera.

Many groupers are important food fish, and some of them are now farmed. Fish farming is the principal form of Aquaculture, while other methods may fall under Mariculture. Unlike most other fish species which are chilled or frozen, groupers are generally sold alive in markets. Any species are popular fish for sea-angling. For the computer security term see Phishing. Fishing is the activity of catching Fish. Some species are small enough to be kept in aquaria, though even the small species are inclined to grow rapidly. An aquarium (plural aquariums or aquaria) is a Vivarium consisting of at least one transparent side in which Water -dwelling Plants

The species Epinephelus lanceolatus can grow very large: there have been reports of them growing big enough to swallow a human bather or even a scuba diver: for example, Arthur C. Clarke wrote that while scuba diving in an inlet on the coast of Sri Lanka he saw a grouper about 20 feet long, and 4 feet thick side to side, living in a sunken floating dock. The giant grouper ( Epinephelus lanceolatus) also known as the brindle bass, brown spotted cod, bumblebee grouper and as the Scuba diving is swimming underwater, or taking part in another activity while using a Scuba set. Sir Arthur Charles Clarke, CBE (16 December 1917–19 March 2008 was a British Science fiction Author, Inventor, and Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka ( Sinhalese:, இலங்கை known as Ceylon before 1972 is an Island A floating dock is a platform or ramp supported by pontoons These are usually joined to the shore with a ramp that rests upon the dock on rollers to adjust for the vertical Swallowing an ordinary open-circuit scuba diver would need a throat that can expand to about 2 feet square. A scuba set is an independent breathing set that provides a scuba diver with the Breathing gas necessary to breathe underwater during Scuba diving. Scuba diving is swimming underwater, or taking part in another activity while using a Scuba set. It could be that Epinephelus lanceolatus does not grow that big more often because it needs a big enough shelter to hide from attack by sharks or seals, and that the situation may change if the current worldwide devastation of sharks for the shark fin trade continues. Sharks ( Superorder Selachimorpha) are a type of Fish with a full cartilaginous Skeleton and a highly streamlined body Pinnipeds ("fin-feet" lit "winged feet" or fin-footed mammals are a widely distributed and diverse group of semi-aquatic marine Mammals comprising Shark fin soup (or shark's fin soup) is a Chinese cuisine Delicacy since Ming Dynasty, commonly served as part of a Chinese feast, (There has been a report that the killing of sharks is leading to an increase in the number of groupers and thus a decline in the numbers of parrot fish and thus more algae overgrowing the coral reefs. Parrotfish are mostly tropical Perciform marine Fish of the family Scaridae. Algae ( sing. alga are a large and diverse group of simple typically Autotrophic organisms ranging from Unicellular to Multicellular forms Corals are Marine organisms from the class Anthozoa and exist as small Sea anemone –like Polyps typically in colonies of many In nautical terminology a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water (six fathoms or less at low water )

A newspaper reported a 396. 8 pound grouper being caught off the waters near Pulau Sembilan in the Straits of Malacca on Tuesday 15 January 2008. [2]. (Image at [1])

Peacock grouper (Cephalopholis argus)

Coral grouper (Cephalopholis miniata)

Malabar Grouper (Epinephelus malabaricus), Melbourne Aquarium

Cephalopholis argus in Kona

According to Seafood Watch, grouper is currently on the list of fish that American consumers, who are health minded, should avoid. Melbourne Aquarium is a Southern Ocean and Antarctic aquarium in central Melbourne, Australia. Seafood Watch is a program designed to raise consumer awareness about the importance of buying Seafood from sustainable sources

Species of grouper include:

Cultural references

References

  1. ^ Interspecific Communicative and Coordinated Hunting between Groupers and Giant Moray Eels in the Red Sea
  2. ^ Whopper of a grouper bought for RM10,000

External links

Dictionary

grouper

-noun

  1. Any of various large food and game fishes of the subfamily Epiphelinae, especially the genera Epinephelus and Mycteroperca, which inhabit warm seas.
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