Groupers of Tahiti — Randall 
289 
FIG. 7. Lectotype of Epinephelus socialis (Giinther) , 190 mm standard length, Tahiti (BM 1873.4.3.1). 
Sen anus socialis Gunther, 1873. Fische der 
Siidsee (J. Mus. Godeffroy); vol. 1, pt. 1, 
p. 7, pi. 8, fig. B (type locality: Tahiti, as 
restricted by lectotype designation below ) . 
One specimen: 276 mm standard length, Pa- 
peete market, Tahiti, May 25, 1957, J. E. Ran- 
dall. usnm 175407. 
Color when fresh: head and body with nu- 
merous small dark brown spots, these becoming 
confluent on posterior part of body to form 
irregular horizontal lines; caudal and soft por- 
tions of dorsal and anal fins dark brown with 
white spots, the anal and posterior part of 
caudal with a white border; spinous portion of 
dorsal fin light brown with irregular dark brown 
spots; pectorals light brown with brown spots 
basally, dark brown distally with a few pale 
spots in middle of fin; pelvic fins dark brown, 
the rays spotted basally, the lateral edge of the 
fin white near tip. 
Three syntypes of Epinephelus socialis were 
examined in the British Museum in London. 
The largest of the three specimens (190 mm 
standard length, 236 mm total length) ( BM 
1873.4.3.1) from Tahiti is here designated as 
lectotype. Meristic data from this specimen are 
as follows: dorsal rays XI, 15; anal rays III, 8; 
pectoral rays 19; vertical scale rows from upper 
end of gill opening to end of hypural 103; gill 
rakers 9 + 1 + 16. 
A year and a half of collecting fishes in Tahiti 
resulted in the taking of only the single speci- 
men of this grouper. A second specimen was 
speared by the author in the lagoon of Takaroa 
in the northern Tuamotu Archipelago, at a 
depth of 15 ft. This was deposited in the col- 
lection of the George Vanderbilt Foundation, 
Stanford University. 
E. socialis has been recorded from Mangareva 
in the southern Tuamotus (Kendall and Rad- 
cliff e, 1912). Recently it has been listed among 
the fishes of the Marshall Islands (Schultz et al., 
1953). Poll (1942:6, fig. 1) recorded two juve- 
niles from the lagoon of Punaauia, Tahiti. 
the identity OF Epinephelus fuscoguttatus 
( FORSKAL ) 
Forskal (1775:42) described fuscoguttatus 
from the Red Sea as a variety of Perea sum- 
mana. The latter is a white-spotted grouper 
now classified in the genus Epinephelus. The 
description of fuscoguttatus is brief, but the 
name has long been recognized as a species of 
Epinephelus distinct from summana. The most 
important characteristics given by Forskal are a 
black spot on the dorsal part of the caudal 
peduncle, circular reddish-brown spots, and 18 
pectoral rays. 
Morgans (1958) utilized the name fuscogutta- 
tus for a species which Randall (1955) identified 
as Epinephelus horridus (Cuvier and Valenci- 
ennes). He applied the name Epinephelus dispar 
(Playfair) (in Playfair and Gunther, 1866) to 
the grouper identified as fuscoguttatus by Schultz 
