| Grammistes sexlineatus | |
|---|---|
| juvenile golden-striped grouper | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Actinopterygii |
| Order: | Perciformes |
| Family: | Serranidae |
| Subfamily: | Grammistinae |
| Genus: | Grammistes |
| Species: | G. sexlineatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Grammistes sexlineatus Thunberg, 1792 |
|
Grammistes sexlineatus also known as Golden-striped Grouper, or Sixline soapfish is a small grouper from the Indo-Pacific, occurring between the Red Sea and Polynesia, the southern part of Japan and the Great Barrier Reef. It is found in turbid lagoons at depths between 1 and 40 m.
This soapfish shows a characteristic striped pattern. As a juvenile six white stripes run down the dark brown body of the fish. As an adult the lines separate out into dotted lines. The adult size of this fish is 30 cm (12 inches).
While not a particularly difficult fish to keep in a marine aquarium, it is often avoided because of the toxic slime it can give off from the glands in its dermis if stressed. Under the wrong circumstances this can result in the death of any other fish in the aquarium. Provided they are kept in a low stress environment they can be kept with other fish, but when shipped the water in the bag containing the fish should not be added to the aquarium.
This fish is usually peaceful with fish that are not small enough for it to eat. It should not be placed with Damselfish or other small fish which will typically be eaten. The minimum aquarium size to keep this fish is 60 gallons.