Achoerodus is a genus of wrasses collectively known as blue gropers. They are found in the coastal waters of southern Australia and distinguished by the bright blue colouring of the adult males.
The thick-bodied blue gropers have peg teeth, heavy scales, large tails and thick lips. Juveniles are brown to green brown. Adult females are brown to greenish-yellow. Each scale may have a darker red spot. The adult males have the bright blue colouring that give the fish their name. The blue can range from deep navy to cobalt blue, and there may also be darker or yellow-orange spots or lines around the eyes.
All blue gropers begin life as females. As they mature, they go through an initial phase, in which they may be male or female, before developing their adult colouring and reaching the terminal phase.
Typically you will only find one or two male blue gropers in an area, with a larger number of the female gropers in the same area. Should the dominant male blue groper die, the largest female will grow, change colour and sex, and become the dominant male.
In Australia certain states like New South Wales have granted protection to this species. It's considered the state fish symbol for the territory and it is illegal to spear blue groper. There is also a limitation on fishing for them with a line. They are extremely inquisitive, and while it is now discouraged to feed them by cutting up urchins, they still will approach divers as if expecting to be fed. Their lifespan is said to be up to 35 years according to some sources, longer according to others.
The fish live in a variety of coastal waters, especially exposed reefs.
In 1998, the eastern blue groper was made the state fish emblem of New South Wales.[1]
SpeciesEdit
The currently recognized species in this genus are:[2]
^. Archived from the original on 27 March 2010. Retrieved 7 March 2010.
^Froese, Rainer and Pauly, Daniel, eds. (2013). Species of Achoerodus in FishBase. August 2013 version.
. Fishes. Australian Museum. Archived from the original on 11 October 2006. Retrieved 11 November 2006.
. Sportsfish Australia. Archived from the original on 15 November 2006. Retrieved 11 November 2006.
. Fish'n'kids. New South Wales Department of Primary Industries. Archived from the original on 17 October 2006. Retrieved 11 November 2006.
"Eastern Blue Groper". Marine Education Society of Australasia. Retrieved 27 January 2015.
External linksEdit
Video: Domain of the Blue Groper
Bega News - Blue groper seized in surveillance operation
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blue groper.
October 21, 2023
blue, groper, confused, with, blue, grouper, achoerodus, genus, wrasses, collectively, known, blue, gropers, they, found, coastal, waters, southern, australia, distinguished, bright, blue, colouring, adult, males, achoerodus, viridisscientific, classificationd. Not to be confused with blue grouper Achoerodus is a genus of wrasses collectively known as blue gropers They are found in the coastal waters of southern Australia and distinguished by the bright blue colouring of the adult males Blue groperAchoerodus viridisScientific classificationDomain EukaryotaKingdom AnimaliaPhylum ChordataClass ActinopterygiiOrder LabriformesFamily LabridaeGenus AchoerodusT N Gill 1863Type speciesLabrus gouldiiJ Richardson 1843Distributions Red eastern blue groperDark blue western blue groperSynonymsHeterochoerops Steindachner 1866 Platychoerops Klunzinger 1879The thick bodied blue gropers have peg teeth heavy scales large tails and thick lips Juveniles are brown to green brown Adult females are brown to greenish yellow Each scale may have a darker red spot The adult males have the bright blue colouring that give the fish their name The blue can range from deep navy to cobalt blue and there may also be darker or yellow orange spots or lines around the eyes All blue gropers begin life as females As they mature they go through an initial phase in which they may be male or female before developing their adult colouring and reaching the terminal phase Typically you will only find one or two male blue gropers in an area with a larger number of the female gropers in the same area Should the dominant male blue groper die the largest female will grow change colour and sex and become the dominant male In Australia certain states like New South Wales have granted protection to this species It s considered the state fish symbol for the territory and it is illegal to spear blue groper There is also a limitation on fishing for them with a line They are extremely inquisitive and while it is now discouraged to feed them by cutting up urchins they still will approach divers as if expecting to be fed Their lifespan is said to be up to 35 years according to some sources longer according to others The fish live in a variety of coastal waters especially exposed reefs In 1998 the eastern blue groper was made the state fish emblem of New South Wales 1 Species EditThe currently recognized species in this genus are 2 Achoerodus gouldii J Richardson 1843 western blue groper Achoerodus viridis Steindachner 1866 eastern blue groper References Edit Symbols amp Emblems of NSW Archived from the original on 27 March 2010 Retrieved 7 March 2010 Froese Rainer and Pauly Daniel eds 2013 Species of Achoerodus in FishBase August 2013 version Eastern Blue Groper Fishes Australian Museum Archived from the original on 11 October 2006 Retrieved 11 November 2006 Blue Groper Sportsfish Australia Archived from the original on 15 November 2006 Retrieved 11 November 2006 Eastern Blue Groper Fish n kids New South Wales Department of Primary Industries Archived from the original on 17 October 2006 Retrieved 11 November 2006 Eastern Blue Groper Marine Education Society of Australasia Retrieved 27 January 2015 External links EditFisheries Western Australia Western Blue Groper Fact Sheet Video Domain of the Blue Groper Bega News Blue groper seized in surveillance operation nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Blue groper Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Blue groper amp oldid 1151942264, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
