What types of grouper are there? A guide to common grouper species
Many people have surely eaten grouper. Its flesh is plump and tender, and it is regarded as a top-grade delicacy, winning praise from many and in short supply on the market. There are quite a lot of grouper species now, so today we will introduce five common grouper species!
Five common grouper species
1. Leopard coral grouper (common in Hainan)
The leopard coral grouper comes in colors such as blue, red, brown and yellow. Its body is slimmer and longer than that of ordinary groupers, with a small head. Its blue eyes have jet-black pupils, and its body is covered with fine white spots that look like stars in the sky, which is why it is called "star grouper". As for the word "east", it is because it is produced in the Dongsha Islands in eastern China.
2. Speckled blue grouper
The speckled blue grouper generally has a body length of 25 cm to 30 cm. Its body surface and all fins except the pectoral fins are covered with gem-like spots. The pectoral fins have red stripes, and the caudal fin is slightly concave with a white edge. It is a warm-temperate demersal fish, mostly living in sea areas with rocky reef bottoms, and it undergoes sex change, being female first and male later. Its growth is relatively slow. Groupers are fierce and alert, mainly carnivorous, and fond of eating fish, shrimp and crabs. They do not like to form groups, and when hungry they may cannibalize one another. The speckled blue grouper is distributed in the Indian Ocean and the western Pacific Ocean, and in China it is produced in the South China Sea. Several provinces in China carry out artificial cage culture of it.
3. Orange-spotted grouper
The orange-spotted grouper has a short, blunt snout. Its dorsal fin has 8 to 11 spines, with no black spot at the base. There are 5 indistinct horizontal bands on the sides of its body, and scattered spots on the sides and on each fin. It is a tropical demersal fish, fond of inhabiting sea areas with rocky reef bottoms, and is a precious fish of the South China Sea. It is fierce, mainly carnivorous, fond of eating fish, shrimp and crabs, and cannibalizes when hungry. It can live in waters with a salinity of 11 per mille to 41 per mille. Its optimum water temperature is 22°C to 28°C. Below 18°C its appetite decreases, and below 15°C its body loses balance. It can be cage-cultured. It is distributed in sea areas such as the East China Sea and the South China Sea of China.
4. Green grouper
The lower part of the green grouper's body has several orange-red spots, and the sides of its body have 6 dark brown vertical stripes, with the widest gap between the 3rd and 4th bands. Only the caudal fin has spots. It is a warm-water demersal fish. Its larvae and juveniles feed on plankton, and adults feed on fish, shrimp and crabs. It is hermaphroditic, with females maturing first; sex reversal occurs at a body length of 250 mm to 400 mm, and males all mature at age 6 (a few at age 5). Its absolute fecundity is 80,000 to 250,000 eggs. The spawning period is from late May to July, with spawning beginning at 20°C and peaking at 22°C to 24°C; it lays pelagic eggs. At a water temperature of 22°C to 25°C, it takes 23 hours to 30 hours to hatch the larvae. Its flesh is delicious, making it a precious fish, and large quantities of live fish are sold to Hong Kong, China and Macao, China. It is a target of shallow-sea aquaculture in China and Southeast Asia, and can be cage-cultured. It is distributed in Taiwan, China, the East China Sea and the South China Sea, as well as Japan.
5. Giant grouper
Its scientific name is the giant grouper, also known as the piglet grouper. It is a warm-water marine bottom fish belonging to the order Perciformes, family Serranidae, subfamily Epinephelinae, genus Epinephelus. Its body is elongated and oval, laterally compressed, with a relatively large mouth. Its head, body sides and all fins are scattered with many blue-black spots. It is a large, precious food fish. In natural sea areas, adults generally have a body length of 60 cm to 70 cm, with a maximum body length of up to 2 m. Their weight is generally about 30 kg to 40 kg, and large ones can reach more than 100 kg to 160 kg. According to records, in July 1999, fishermen in Hong Kong, China once caught a female giant grouper alive in the Dongsha Islands, weighing 180 kg, which was regarded as the king of giant groupers.
Friends who have eaten grouper probably find it hard to forget its taste. It is tender and delicious, making people want more after eating it, and of course market demand is also relatively large. Besides the five common species above, there are many other types of grouper. Which one do you prefer to eat?
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