Epinephelus aeneus (Geoffroy St. Hilaire 1817) —White grouper

Taxonomy. First record from Lebanon as Epinephelus oeneus, C.V. by Gruvel (1931: 100); subsequently recorded as Epinephelus aeneus (Geoffroy St. Hilaire 1809) by George et al. (1964: 17); as Epinephelus aeneus (Geoffroy St Hil.) by Mouneimné (1977: 62); as Epinephelus aeneus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire 1817) by Mouneimné (2002: 131–132); recently recorded as Epinephelus aeneus by Harmelin-Vivien et al. (2005: 629). Material in collection: AUBM, AMNH, BMNH and USNM.

Distribution. Mediterranean Sea, Sea of Marmara, eastern Atlantic: Portugal and Morocco south to Angola, including Cape Verde Islands and islands of the Gulf of Guinea.

Conservation. IUCN: Global (NT:A2bd, 18 November 2016); Med. (NT: 1 January 2008). Capture and threats: FIT, Unknown. Occurrence: Rare. Significant decline in the last two decades. High priority for conservation action.