Grouper ID

binaryfuneral

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Can anyone identify this grouper? I’m having g the hardest time.
C1C856AB-364A-4A09-968D-F34096E9D04F.jpeg
 

ISpeakForTheSeas

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As best as I can guess, it looks like a member of the Epinephelus genus. Personally, I'm leaning toward either Epinephelus fasciatus or Epinephelus caeruleopunctatus, but I don't know for sure if either is correct - E. fasciatus is highly variable in colors, so if you just search for it, it almost exclusively pulls up the red and white members of the species, but it can come in colors like this too (see the link below).
 
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binaryfuneral

binaryfuneral

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As best as I can guess, it looks like a member of the Epinephelus genus. Personally, I'm leaning toward either Epinephelus fasciatus or Epinephelus caeruleopunctatus, but I don't know for sure if either is correct - E. fasciatus is highly variable in colors, so if you just search for it, it almost exclusively pulls up the red and white members of the species, but it can come in colors like this too (see the link below).
I know. I’m having a really hard time with it as it’s clearly a very small juvenile so I have no idea how big this will get. I can do a two foot fish but I’m just afraid it will turn into a six foot monster. LFS has no idea what kind of grouper it is as it was sent to them as the wrong fish.
 

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I know. I’m having a really hard time with it as it’s clearly a very small juvenile so I have no idea how big this will get. I can do a two foot fish but I’m just afraid it will turn into a six foot monster. LFS has no idea what kind of grouper it is as it was sent to them as the wrong fish.
Im pretty sure it's not a goliath grouper. Hopefully you'll be able to get an id in a month.
 
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binaryfuneral

binaryfuneral

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One thing that’s very distinctive about this fish are its red irises. Does that help at all?
 

ISpeakForTheSeas

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I don't know if the irises would be helpful or not, but the only one I can find with red eyes is the red/white variation of Epinephelus fasciatus. The tail leads me to lean toward it being Epinephelus caeruleopunctatus, with the white band and base of it.
Possibly more helpful for ID purposes would be the color of the dorsal fin (the fin along the fish's back).
Does the dorsal fin look like any of the following:

1653614226177.png

1653614176547.png

1653614421306.png

(Pictures taken from these sites)
 
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