Friday 17 May
Redmouth grouper (Aethaloperca rogaa)
DATADEFICIENT
Redmouth grouper fact file
- Description
- Biology
- Range
- Habitat
- Status
- Threats
- Conservation
- Find out more
- Glossary
- References
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Redmouth grouper description
| Kingdom | Animalia |
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Actinopterygii |
| Order | Perciformes |
| Family | Serranidae |
| Genus | Aethaloperca |
The redmouth grouper is a robust, reef fish with a deep, compressed body (1) (3). It is generally dark brown to black in colour, occasionally with an orange cast, while the inside of its mouth is reddish-orange, hence the common name (1) (3) (4). The juvenile differs from the adult primarily in having its dorsal fin and caudal fin edged bluish-white. In resembling small, non-predatory reef fish, juveniles are thought to benefit from this ‘disguise’ when foraging for prey (2) (3).
- Also known as
- Red-flushed cod, red-flushed rock-cod, redmouth grouper, redmouth rockcod.
- Synonyms
- Aethaloperca rogae, Aethaloperca rogoa, Aetheloperca rogaa, Aetholoperca rogaa, Athaloperca rogae, Cepahlopholis rogaa, Perca lunaria, Perca rogaa.
- French
- Matongo, Merou Noir, Vielle Roga.
- Spanish
- Cherna Roga.
- Size
- Max length: 60cm (1)
- Grouper and Wrasse Specialist Group:
http://www.hku.hk/ecology/GroupersWrasses/iucnsg - Bycatch
- In the fishing industry, the part of the catch made up of non-target species.
- Caudal fin
- The tail fin of a fish, used for steering, balancing or propulsion.
- Crustaceans
- Diverse group of arthropods (a phylum of animals with jointed limbs and a hard chitinous exoskeleton) characterised by the possession of two pairs of antennae, one pair of mandibles (parts of the mouthparts used for handling and processing food) and two pairs of maxillae (appendages used in eating, which are located behind the mandibles). Includes crabs, lobsters, shrimps, slaters, woodlice and barnacles.
- Dorsal fin
- In fish, one of the unpaired fins found on the back of the body.
- Spawn
- The production or depositing of large quantities of eggs in water.
- Heemstra, P.C. and Randall, J.E. (1993) FAO Species Catalogue. Vol. 16: Groupers of the World. Food and Agricultural Organization, Rome.
- IUCN Red List (April, 2009)
http://www.iucnredlist.org/ - Snyder, D.B., Randall, J.E. and Michael, S.W. (2001) Aggressive mimicry by the juvenile of the redmouth grouper, Aethaloperca rogaa. Cybium, 25: 227 - 232.
- Randall, J.E. (1994) Coastal fishes of Oman. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu.
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Redmouth grouper biology
Owing to the natural scarcity of the redmouth grouper, very little is known about this species’ biology (2). It feeds mainly on small, cave-dwelling fish but will also take mantis shrimps and other crustaceans. Early evidence suggests that the redmouth grouper spawns at any time of the year and, unlike some groupers, does not aggregate to spawn (2) (1).
TopRedmouth grouper range
The redmouth grouper is found in the vicinity of most land masses of the Indian Ocean, from South Africa to the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf, east to Southeast Asia and the islands of the western Pacific (2) (1).
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Species with a similar range
Redmouth grouper habitat
This reef species prefers well-developed coral reefs at depths of 1 to 60 metres, where it is often seen near caves and holes (2) (1).
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Species found in a similar habitat
Redmouth grouper status
Classified as Data Deficient (DD) on the IUCN Red List (2).
Redmouth grouper threats
The threats to the redmouth grouper are poorly understood, but there are concerns that it is being overfished due to its capture as bycatch in artisanal and small-scale commercial fisheries. Furthermore, as an inhabitant of coral reefs, this species is likely to be vulnerable to habitat loss and degradation (2).
TopRedmouth grouper conservation
There are currently no specific conservation measures in place for the redmouth grouper but it is found in protected areas throughout its range (2).
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View information on this species at the UNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre. |
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Find out more
For further information on the conservation of groupers see:
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References
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Redmouth grouper with cleaner shrimp at cleaning station
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