Starspotted grouper

About this species

Epinephelus hexagonatus, commonly referred to as the star-spotted groper or the wirenet rockcod, is a species of grouper from the family Serranidae, which also includes the anthias and sea basses. It is mostly found in the west Indian Ocean.

Text from the Wikipedia article “Epinephelus hexagonatus”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 27 records
February: 55 records
March: 89 records
April: 225 records
May: 99 records
June: 101 records
July: 64 records
August: 68 records
September: 64 records
October: 56 records
November: 32 records
December: 12 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 0–15 m · Deepest record: 660 m

0–10 m: 426 records
10–20 m: 154 records
20–30 m: 21 records
30–40 m: 1 records
40–50 m: 2 records
50–60 m: 0 records
60–70 m: 0 records
70–80 m: 0 records
80–90 m: 0 records
90–100 m: 0 records
100–110 m: 1 records
110+ m: 1 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 20–30 °C

18–20 °C: 1 records
20–22 °C: 0 records
22–24 °C: 1 records
24–26 °C: 26 records
26–28 °C: 152 records
28–30 °C: 410 records

Photos

(c) Jay Paroline, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Mike Bowie, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Cricket Raspet, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Jon Sullivan, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Dan Schofield, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) 呂一起(Lyu yi-chi), some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: Starspotted grouper, Hexagon Grouper, Hexagon Grouper, Starspotted grouper, White-specked grouper, Honeycomb Grouper, starspotted grouper, Star-spotted Grouper, White Speckled Rockcod, Wirenetting Cod

Names in 2 more languages

French: Loche A Hexagone, Loche à hexagone, Loche à hexagones, Macabit gris, Mérou mélifère, Merou A Dessins Hexagonaux, Merou Melifere, Mérou mélifère
Japanese: Ishigakihata, イシガキハタ

Other scientific names: Ephinephelus hexagonatus, Epinephalus hexagonatus, Epinephelus hexagonathus, Epinephelus stellans, Holocentrus hexagonatus, Serranus hexagonatus, Serranus parkinsonii, Serranus stellans

Similar species

Blacktip grouper
Epinephelus fasciatus
Honeycomb grouper
Epinephelus merra
Areolate grouper
Epinephelus areolatus
Garrupa
Epinephelus coeruleopunctatus
Orange-spotted grouper
Epinephelus coioides
Brown-marbled grouper
Epinephelus fuscoguttatus

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
1,300 open-data records from 1801 to 2023.
Species data updated October 26, 2026.