Serranidae

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Serranidae
Humpback grouper, Cromileptes altivelis
Humpback grouper, Cromileptes altivelis
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Perciformes
Suborder: Percoidei
Superfamily: Percoidea
Family: Serranidae
Subfamilies

Anthiinae
Epinephelinae
Grammistinae
Liopropomatinae
Serraninae

Synonyms

Grammistidae

Serranidae is a large family of fishes, belonging to the order Perciformes. The family contains about 450 species of serranids in 64 genera, including the sea basses and the groupers (subfamily Epinephelinae). They range in size from the belted sandfish (Serranus subligarius) which grows to 110 mm (4.33 in) up to the itajara (Epinephelus itajara) which grows to 2.4 m (94.5 in) and weighs up to 300 kg (660 lb).

Many of these species are brightly colored, and many are caught commercially for food. They are usually found over reefs, in tropical to sub-tropical waters along the coasts. Many species are sequential hermaphrodites, starting out as males and changing sex to female later in life. They produce large quantities of eggs and their larvae are planktonic, generally at the mercy of ocean currents until they are ready to settle into adult populations.

[edit] Classification

[edit] Images of serranids

[edit] References

  • "Serranidae". FishBase. Ed. Rainer Froese and Daniel Pauly. January 2006 version. N.p.: FishBase, 2006.