Leather Bass

Familia: Sea Basses & Groupers (Serranidae))
Tamaño: Up to 100 cm (39 in) | Común 60 cm
Profundidad: 4 – 50m (13 – 160ft)
Distribución: Eastern Tropical Pacific (from southern California to Peru, including the Galapagos and Revillagigedo Islands).

Identificación: A medium-to-large grouper recognizable by its mottled pattern and colorful fin trims.

• Mottled Body: The greyish-brown to olive body is heavily mottled with pale white and grey blotches.
• Bright Fin Margins: Look for the distinct, thin yellow or yellow-green bands tracing the edges of the pectoral, dorsal, and tail fins.
• Fase juvenil: Juveniles are completely distinct, displaying a black body with striking white horizontal stripes.

Comportamiento: A diurnal hunter with clever foraging tactics.

• Shadow Hunting: They actively follow browsing herbivores or foraging moray eels across the reef, waiting to snap up any small fish or crustaceans flushed from hiding.
• Reef Hovering: Often found hovering near rocky faces or resting at the base of steep underwater structures along the Chocó coast.