Honeycomb grouper (Epinephelus merra)

Scientific name: Epinephelus merra Bloch, 1793

The Honeycomb grouper (Epinephelus merra) is a marine fish of the family Serranidae. Native range: Indo-Pacific, South Africa to French Polynesia. Not known from the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, nor Asian mainland.

Biology

Very common in shallow lagoon and semi-protected seaward reefs. Juveniles are common in thickets of staghorn Acropora corals. Feed on crustaceans and fishes. Increase of piscivory with age is observed in this species. Cultured under experimental conditions in the Philippines. In the Hong Kong live fish markets. Neither opercular spine nor anterolateral glandular grooves with venom gland is present. Current information in the table (dangerous fish) do not match; needs verification.

Source: FishBase, licensed CC BY-NC 4.0.

Species facts

Scientific name: Epinephelus merra
Family: Serranidae (Sea basses: groupers and fairy basslets)
Order: Perciformes (Perch-like fish)
Class: Actinopterygii (Ray-finned fishes)
Maximum length: 31.0
Depth range: 0–50 m (0–164 ft)
Environment: Marine; reef-associated; depth range 0 - 50 m, usually ? - 20 m
Climate: Tropical
Distribution: Indo-Pacific: South Africa to French Polynesia. Not known from the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, nor Asian mainland.
Conservation status (IUCN): Least Concern (LC)
Threat to humans: Reports of ciguatera poisoning
Uses: Fisheries: commercial; aquaculture: commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: public aquariums
Resilience: High, minimum population doubling time less than 15 months (K=0.3-0.6)