Epinephelus daemelii (Günther, 1876)
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The saddletail grouper (Epinephelus daemelii), known as black cod or black rock-cod in their main range in Australia, and as saddle-tailed grouper or spotted black grouper in New Zealand, is a large marine fish of the family Serranidae. It is found off the coastline of southeastern Australia and northern New Zealand, generally inhabiting near-shore rock and coral reefs at depths down to 50 metres. Its main range comprises the southeast coastline of Australia, in the state of New South Wales; New Zealand populations are suspected to be nonbreeding, so are a result of drifting larvae. However, spawning aggregations have been recorded off northern New Zealand. This grouper grows to 200 cm in length and at least 68 kg in weight. The species is a generalised carnivore, preying on crustaceans and fish. It has a typical grouper appearance. Colouration varies from a dark grey-black colour to the more usual blotched or banded black and white pattern.
Wikipedia contributors, Saddletail grouper; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T22:28:51.588033+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Epinephelus daemelii (Günther, 1876)
- Name authority
- (Günther, 1876)
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Teleostei
- Order
- Perciformes
- Family
- Epinephelidae
- Genus
- Epinephelus
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Source habitat flags: Marine: yes · Freshwater: no · Terrestrial: no. These do not form a complete habitat description.
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- gigaclassActinopterygii
- superclassActinopteri
- classTeleostei
- orderPerciformes
- suborderPercoidei
- familyEpinephelidae Bleeker, 1874
- genusEpinephelus Bloch, 1793
- speciesEpinephelus daemelii (Günther, 1876)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Epinephelus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Epinephelus bleekeri (Vaillant, 1878) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| rock hindEpinephelus adscensionis (Osbeck, 1765) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus clippertonensis Allen & Robertson, 1999 | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus diacanthus (Valenciennes, 1828) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus chlorocephalus (Valenciennes, 1830) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus fasciatomaculosus (Peters, 1865) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| blue and yellow grouperEpinephelus flavocaeruleus (Lacepède, 1802) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| flag cabrillaEpinephelus labriformis (Jenyns, 1840) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus latifasciatus (Temminck & Schlegel, 1842) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| speckled grouperEpinephelus magniscuttis Postel, Fourmanoir & Guézé, 1963 | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Nassau grouperEpinephelus striatus (Bloch, 1792) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Epinephelus socialis (Günther, 1873) | EpinephelidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Epinephalus daemelii (Günther, 1876) (Günther, 1876) | synonym |
| Serranus daemelii Günther, 1876 Günther, 1876 | synonym |
| Epinephelus damelii (Günther, 1876) (Günther, 1876) | synonym |
| Epinephelus daemeli (Günther, 1876) (Günther, 1876) | synonym |
| Epinephelus forsythi Whitley, 1937 Whitley, 1937 | synonym |
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=273846 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:6FTMW. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.