First Record of Orange Spotted Grouper Epinephelus coioides (Hamilton, 1822) from the Iskenderun Bay, the northeastern Mediterranean

Abstract

A single specimen of orange spotted grouper Epinephelus coioides (Hamilton, 1822) was captured by a fisherman with a fishing line from the Iskenderun Bay (Konacık, Turkey) at 52 m depth. The morphological and color descriptions of E. coioides agree with previous descriptions. This record indicates that the eastward migration of this species in the Mediterranean coast of Turkey and fills the gap in the distribution range of the serranid species.