Brokenbar Grouper

This species is distinguished from all its congeners by the following set of characters: D XI,16-17; A III,8; pectoral-fn rays 18-20; caudal fn rounded; auxiliary scales on body absent; ventral corner of preopercle with 2-4 relatively large spines; upper limb of first gill arch with 7-8 gill rakers; orbit diameter 4.1-5.0 in HL; short snout 5.3-6.7 in HL. Colouration: when freshly dead pale yellowish brown with fve, faint, dark brown bars interrupted dorsally with lighter coloration; darker brown irregular, squarish blotch approximately half way down each bar; a dark band across the operculum; small brown dots dorsally on head and anterodorsally on body; dark bars on body extending partially onto dorsal fin; dorsal, anal and caudal fins without dark margins (Ref. 122001).Description: E. craigi differs from E. stictus in having dark brown dots dorsally on the head and body and in lacking auxiliary scales on the body opercle (vs. absent in E. stictus; absence of dark margins on the soft dorsal, caudal and anal fns (vs. present); and difference in morphometrics (Ref. 122001).

Dorsal spines (total): 11; Dorsal soft rays (total): 16 - 17; Analspines: 3; Analsoft rays: 8; Vertebrae: 24

This species is landed in trawling and longline fisheries at 28-93 m and this appears in commercial hauls and not common in fish markets in Hong Kong (Ref. 122001).