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Fish4Life provides everything you need to enjoy seafood responsibly. Explore information and practical tips for safe and sustainable seafood consumption, and help protect marine life by reporting undersized or illegally traded seafood.

Dusky grouper
Epinephelus marginatus
Ροφός, σφόρος

Sustainability Status

Highly exploited

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Help us protect our seas by reporting illegal or undersized fish that you see in markets, restaurants or fishing boats
Fishstocks – Declining due to overexploitation
Bad choice –Consumption of this species is unsustainable

Legal

Minimum Size

45 cm

Prohibited Consumption Period

–

Sustainable

Minimum Size

45 cm

Avoid Consumption Period

Year round

Advice for Consumption

Heavily overexploited – therefore its consumption is unsustainable.

If you choose to consume this species, always respect the recommended minimum sustainable size and do not consume individuals caught during the reproductive season.

Archipelagos Tips

Select larger-sized fish and check that it has no spearfishing marks.

This species is widely supplied to the market illegally through spearfishing, as spearfishing is permitted only for personal use and fish caught in this way cannot be sold commercially. When purchasing or ordering this species, ask to see the whole fish and check for signs of spearfishing, such as entry marks on the body or the top of the head.

Common names

FR

Mérou brun

it

Cernia

es

Mero

tr

Orfoz

pt

Mero

nl

Bruine tandbaars

de

Riesen-Zackenbarsch

toxicity

This species is safe to consume.

iucn info

Endangered (EN)

Description

The head and body are a dark reddish/grayish color on top. The belly is lighter, sometimes yellowish. It has white or beige spots visible on the body and head. The fins are dark brown, often with a white margin at the end. The pelvis and pectoral fins are dark, often yellowish at their base. It has a large mouth with thick lips.

It looks like Epinephelus aeneus (White grouper) it generally has a lighter color and lacks the distinctive dark margins on the fins that Epinephelus marginatus often displays.

Did you know?

The dusky groupers have unique markings around their eyes, like fingerprints!

Ecological Aspects

Diet

Macro-carnivore.
Feeds on crabs, octopi, fish and benthic invertebrates. Increase of nutritional requirements during the life cycle is satisfied by predating on larger prey instead of a greater number of preys.

habitat

Prefers rocky bottoms.
Juveniles are found closer to shore in rocky tidal pools.

Max size & depth range

Max length: 150 cm
Max weight: 60 kg
Depth range: 8-300 m

breeding & Growth

The females mature around 5–6 years old and transition to males at larger sizes, often over 80 cm total length.
Spawning is seasonal, occurring during summer months (June–September).
Growth rate: Slow (k = 0.006 yr⁻¹).

Longevity & presence

Lifespan: 30-40 years
Max reported age: 60 years
Distribution: throughout the Mediterranean Sea, and from the Southern Bay of Biscay to Southern tip of Africa. Stray specimens reported from the British Isles, and Eastern English Channel.

appearance changes

They undergo significant appearance changes throughout its life, primarily driven by growth and its development as a protogynous hermaphrodite (changing from female to male). These changes involve shifts in body shape, color patterns and size.

Reproductive Cycle

It is a determinate spawner that releases between 65,000 and 8 million eggs, depending heavily on the female’s body size. A single female spawns an average of 10 batches (or spawning events) per year.
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Good choice – Consumption of this species is currently considered sustainable

Illegal species – Fishing, selling and consumption of this species is illegal

Fishstocks – Declining due to overexploitation

Think before you eat – This species faces increasing pressures and should only be consumed responsibly

Bad choice – Consumption of this species is unsustainable

Health concerns –
Can accumulate dangerously high levels of toxic substances harmful to health

Alien / Invasive – This species is not from this region and can have a negative impact on the ecosystem and threaten local biodiversity, so it is sustainable to eat

Aquafarms – You will commonly find this species coming from aquafarms