The brown grouper is gradually returning to the Mediterranean

Sexuality is certainly a complex dimension of biological creatures. The same goes for groupers, these large fish that swim above coral reefs or sandy bottoms.

Scientific studies have, for the time being, believed to recognize a particular phenomenon in them, that of protogynous hermaphroditism. If most of these fish are born female – with sexual maturity around the age of five – they can become males around ten years later, then significantly increasing in size.

An evolutionary adaptation undoubtedly linked to their lifestyle, quite solitary and territorial, in order to increase the chances of reproduction. Especially since the animal – especially the male, more impressive – is particularly sought after by underwater fishing enthusiasts, who appreciate its delicate flesh.

In its environment, the brown grouper, dark red in color, spotted, is robust. He knows how to protect himself from his natural predators and competing males of his species. The fifteen or so formidable spines arranged on its fins bear witness to this. It is a formidable carnivore: with its large mouth and powerful gills, it sucks in fish, octopus and crustaceans, which will be crushed by large flat teeth in its pharynx.