Species: Hyporthodus mystacinus, Misty grouper
dark oblique stripes behind eye
Hyporthodus mystacinus (Poey, 1852)
Misty grouper
Body robust, compressed, deepest at origin of dorsal fin, depth < head length; large eyes; rear of top jaw exposed when mouth closed, without bony knob at lower rear corner; teeth depressible; sides of roof of mouth with teeth; front nostril <1/4 of rear nostril; operculum edge with 3 flat spines; preoperculum rounded, not serrated; 22-25 gill rakers; dorsal fin XI, 14-15, spine III longest, membranes between spines indented, length of base of soft part not longer than that of spiny part; anal fin III, 9; pectoral fin symmetrically rounded, 18-19; origin of pelvic under base of pectoral, shorter than pectoral; tail slightly convex or bluntly straight; body scales rough, 58-69 on lateral line.
Adult: Chocolate brown with pale spots and 8-9 dark bars on head and body, those on body extending onto dorsal and anal fins, last one on tail base widest and darkest; 3 oblique dark stripes on side of head -1 along top of upper jaw and on cheek, 2 behind eye and on operculum. Juvenile: like adult but also with a dark head, and a broad black bar across tail base.
Size: 115 cm.
Habitat: rocky reefs.
Depth: 12-439 m, usually below 30 m.
The NW Atlantic and eastern Pacific; N Carolina to the S Caribbean.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
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- Marine
- Marine Only
- Inshore/Offshore
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- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
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- Bottom
- Bottom only
- Habitat
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- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- Rocks
- Reef and soft bottom
- Corals
- FishBase Habitat
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- Reef Associated
- Feeding Group
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- Carnivore
- Data
- Diet
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- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- Data
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Bony fishes
- Egg Type
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- Data
- Pelagic
- Pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
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- Transisthmian (East Pacific + Atlantic of Central America)
- All species.
- Greater Caribbean non-endemic
- New world (East Pacific + West Atlantic)
- Regional Endemism
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- GC non-endemic
- Island (s)
- All species..
- Extends North of GC
- Continent
- Continent + Island (s)
- Residency
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- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Tropical (10-23N, Nicaragua / Cuba)
- Subtropical (23-35N, Florida / Carolinas / Bermuda)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
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- Not listed
- Length Max
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- 115
- Depth Range Min
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- 12
- Depth Range Max
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- 439
