Taxon name
Epinephelus epistictus
(Temminck & Schlegel, 1842)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Epinephelus epistictus
(Temminck & Schlegel, 1842)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Fishes
Species authority
(Temminck & Schlegel, 1842)
Taxonomic notes and synonyms listed
This species is sometimes misidentified as Epinephelus magniscuttis or Epinephelus heniochus.
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Data deficient
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
In the UAE, this relatively deep-living, reef-associated species occurs only in the Sea of Oman. It is heavily exploited in grouper fisheries that operate along the UAE eastern coast and neighboring areas of Oman, and these are considered to be part of the same population. Anecdotal information indicates that catch of this species has declined by 50% since about 2000, but quantified data are not available. Life history data are also not available, which prevents an estimate of generation length at this time. Due to the lack of information and major threat from overexploitation, it is listed as Data Deficient in the UAE. In addition to improvements in fisheries monitoring, research is also needed on its life history.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
In UAE waters, this species occurs only in the Sea of Oman. Its occurrence in the Arabian Gulf apparently excludes the southern portion from Qatar to the UAE. Globally, it is somewhat patchily distributed in the Indo-West Pacific from South Africa, Mozambique, the Red Sea, the Arabian Gulf, India, Indonesia, the South China Sea, southern Japan, Papua New Guinea and the Gulf of Carpentaria, northern Australia. It is not present in the Philippines (Y. Sadovy pers. comm. 2017). Its depth range is 71-291 metres.
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This species occurs in deeper waters on rocky reef, and sometimes sandy bottom (Heemstra and Randall 1993, McIlwain et al. 2011). Its maximum total length is 80 cm and may be a protogynous hermaphrodite (Heemstra and Randall 1993).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Overfishing is a potential major threat to this species in the UAE.
Publication
Ralph, G.M., Stump, E., Linardich, C., Bullock, R.W., Carpenter, K.E., Allen D.J., Hilton-Taylor, C., Al Mheiri, R., and Alshamsi, O. 2021. UAE National Red List of Marine Species: Reef-building corals, cartilaginous fishes and select bony fishes. 2021. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
