Graysby
| Graysby | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Serranidae |
| Genus: | Cephalopholis |
| Species: | C. cruentata |
| Binomial name | |
| Cephalopholis cruentata (Lacepède, 1802) | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Epinephelus cruentatus | |
The graysby (Cephalopholis cruentata) is a grouper in the Serranidae family from the Western Atlantic. It is found from North Carolina to southern Florida (USA), Bermuda, the Gulf of Mexico, the Bahamas, and the Caribbean. Its typical size is 15 to 25 cm (6 to 10 in) in length, with a maximum size of 42 cm (16.5 in).[2]
Description
The graysby inhabits Thalassia beds and coral reefs. In the Gulf of Mexico, they are found on rocky reef ledge in depths greater than 27 metres (89 ft). A solitary and secretive species, they usually stay near hiding places during the day. They prefer to remain within a small area of the home range of about 2,120 square metres (0.52 acres), especially during the day. The graysby is a nocturnal predator, adults feed mainly on fishes, with preference on Chromis multilineata, juveniles feed on shrimps. Most change sex between 20 and 23 centimetres (7.9 and 9.1 in) (ages 4 and 5), with sexual transition occurring immediately after spawning in August and September.[2]
It is parasitized by Pseudorhabdosynochus meganmarieae.[3]
References
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cephalopholis cruentata. |
- ↑ Catalog of fishes - Epinephelus cruentatus
- 1 2 Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2009). "Cephalopholis cruentata" in FishBase. September 2009 version.
- ↑ Kritsky, Delane C.; Bakenhaster, Micah D.; Adams, Douglas H. (2015). "Pseudorhabdosynochus species (Monogenoidea, Diplectanidae) parasitizing groupers (Serranidae, Epinephelinae, Epinephelini) in the western Atlantic Ocean and adjacent waters, with descriptions of 13 new species". Parasite. 22: 24. doi:10.1051/parasite/2015024. ISSN 1776-1042. PMC 4536336. PMID 26272242.