Masked Grouper, Juvenile

Gracila Groupers should only be added to very large well established aquariums with plenty of rockwork with caves and crevices to hide in. Groupers are very secretive and will hide until food is presented. They have low metabolism's and only require feeding every other day. Groupers are usually very friendly fish except to fish or crustaceans they can fit in their mouth. Should be housed with larger peaceful tank mates and only one grouper per aquarium. Provide a diet of meaty enriched foods. If not eating offer live foods such as enriched Brine, Glass/Grass shrimp, black worms and fiddler crabs to entice a feeding response. Groupers emit large amounts of waste ensure the filtration system can handle the waste.

Masked Grouper are also sometimes known as the Whitemargin or Slenderspine Grouper. Rarely seen in the aquarium trade. Juvenile and adult Masked Groupers may have color differences. Juveniles are very colorful with a dark blue and red dorsal and anal fins, red on the tail fin lobes, the upper caudal peduncle is red. As the fish matures they begin to loose their bright coloration and become a bit drab. The adult will have a gray body with a white upper body and caudal peduncle and a black dot about mid body. Masked Groupers can grow to a little over 15".

We recommend a minimum aquarium size of 200 gallons or larger for this species.

Water conditions: Salinity 1.020 - 1.025, Temp (F) 72 - 78, pH 8.1 - 8.4, Alkalinity 8 - 12 dKH