On the eighth day of Fishmas, m dear love gave to me… a snowy grouper!
Snowy groupers (Epinephelus niveatus) are deep water, subtropical fish. They get their name from the white spots they develop as juveniles on their brown bodies. As they grow older they lose these spots and become simply dark brown, earning them their other name, the Chocolate grouper.
Fun fact: you’d be hard pressed to find a young male snowy grouper. They’re protogynous hermaphrodites, meaning they all begin life as females until some adults switch to males!
Sources for images here and here
