Description

The Coney Grouper Fish (Cephalopholis Fulva) is a relatively small grouper species which occurs in three main color forms: a red or dark brown form, commonly found in deep water; an orange-brown or bicolored form, orangey-brown above and pale below, which usually occurs in shallow water; and a yellow (‘xanthic’) form, found in both deep and shallow water. In the first two forms, the head and body are covered in small, dark-edged blue spots, while in the yellow form the spots are fewer and are confined to the front part of the head and body.

The Coney Grouper Fish is most easily distinguished from its close relatives by the convex rear margin and sharp corners of the tail fin, while the black spots on the lower jaw and near the tail are also distinctive. In this species, the front part of the dorsal fin has nine spines, and the membrane between the spines is distinctly notched. The soft rear part of the dorsal fin is rounded, and the anal fin and pectoral fins are also rounded. Although it has been recorded growing up to 21.7″ inches in length, the Coney Grouper Fish more usually grows to between 12″ and 16.5″ inches.