Rock-hind; Cabra Mora 



Rock-hind; Cabra Mora 



Epinephelus adscensionis (Osbeck) 



This beautiful and important species is known from southern 

 Florida, Ascension and St. Helena islands, the West Indies, and to 

 Brazil. It has also been recorded from the Cape of Good Hope. It 

 reaches a length of i8 inches, is common in rocky places, and is con- 

 sidered the finest food-fish of the group. 



Head 2|; depth 3; eye 6; D. XI, 17; A. Ill, 7 or 8; scales 12-90 

 to 110-40, 5=> to 60 pores. Body rather robust, little compressed, the 

 greatest thickness 2 in depth; head subconic, acute; mouth rather 

 large, maxillary reaching beyond eye, 2^ in head; lower jaw rather 

 strongly projecting, more prominent than in any other species. 



Colour in life, olivaceous gray, with darker clouds; a number of 

 irregular whitish blotches scattered over body; 5 ill-defined, roundish, 

 blackish blotches along side of back, the 4 under dorsal fin extending 

 on fin; head and body everywhere covered with round orange-brown 

 spots of varying size, the centres more orange, the borders brownish, 

 these largest on breast, smallest on lips and under parts, equally dis- 

 tinct everywhere; mouth pale within, the roof with red spots; dorsal 

 light olive, with sparse spots like those on body but smaller; no dark 

 edge to dorsal and anal; numerous white spots on dorsal, most numer- 

 ous on soft part; caudal pale olive with some paler spots; anal red- 

 dish, marked like the dorsal, its spots larger; basal half of pectoral 

 like dorsal, the distal half plain olive; ventrals pale with orange spots. 



E. gtiaia, the merou or mero, is found on the eastern Atlantic 

 from England to the Cape of Good Hope, but has been recorded from 

 our waters only from the coast of Brazil. It is a large fish, reaching a 

 length of 3 feet and a weight of 25 pounds or more. 



E. labriformis is a Pacific coast species, known from Cape San 

 Lucas south to the Galapagos Islands. It reaches 2 feet in length and 

 is rather common about rocky places. 



The yellow-finned grouper {E. Jlavolimbatus) is known from 

 Cuba and the Snapper Banks off the west coast of Florida. It may be the 

 adult of E. niveatus, from which it seems to differ only in colour. In 

 life brownish flesh-colour, unspotted; a clear blue streak from angle 

 of eye to preopercle; no spots or blotches anywhere, and no black on 

 caudal peduncle; whole dorsal with a narrow edge of bright yellow. 



35^3 



