Dusky grouper

Description

Epinephelus marginatus is a very large,oval-bodied and large-headed fish with a wide mouth which has a protruding lower jaw.The head and upper body are coloured dark reddish brown or greyish,usually with yellowish gold countershading on the ventral surfaces;the base colour is marked by a vertical series of irregular pale greenish yellow or silvery grey or whitish blotching which is normally rather conspicuous on the body and head;the black maxillary streak varies in its markedness;dark brown median fins;distal edges of the anal and caudal fins and also often pectoral fins have narrow white terminal bands;the pelvic fins are black towards their tips while the pectoral fins are dark reddish-brown or grey;the margin of spiny dorsal fin and basal part of the pectoral fins are often golden yellow in colour.There are eleven spines and 13-16 soft rays in the dorsal fin.This species can grow up to 150 cm in standard length but is more often 90 cm.