Genetics Reveals Big Fish That Almost Got Away

August 22, 2008

Researchers from the University of Hawaii, the Wildlife Conservation Society, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, National Marine Fisheries Service and Projecto Meros do Brazil discovered a new species of fish—a grouper that reaches more than six feet in length and can weigh nearly 1,000 pounds. This newly discovered species can be found roaming the tropical reefs of the Eastern Pacific Ocean.

Was the massive fish hiding among the corals and sea grass to evade marine biologists? No, it was just a case of mistaken identity, as explained in a recent genetic study in the journal Endangered Species Research.

It turns out that goliath in the Atlantic—which inhabit the tropical waters of the Americas and western Africa—are not the same groupers that swim in Pacific waters, even though they look identical.

A new genetic study by the University of Hawaii, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and others has found that there are two species of goliath grouper instead of one. (Credit: Rachel Graham/Wildlife Conservation Society)

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Posted in Nature, Science and Technology