Global News - August 2008
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Researchers identify new species of fish
Wed 27 August 2008 14:00 UK — South America,Marine Wildlife
Researchers from the US have revealed that they have uncovered a new species fish.
Writing in the journal Endangered Species Research, the team from the University of Hawaii and various other marine research institutions explained that the grouper can grow up to six feet in length and weigh as much as 450 kilograms.
The team revealed that it had previously been thought that groupers that lived in the tropical waters of the Americas and western Africa were the same species as those inhabiting the Pacific.
"For more than a century, ichthyologists have thought that Pacific and Atlantic goliath grouper were the same species, and the argument was settled before the widespread use of genetic techniques," explained Dr Matthew Craig of the Hawaii Institute of Marine Biology.
However, the research team have now used DNA from both populations to show that they are actually different species.
As a result, the Pacific species is now to be called Epinephelus quinquefasciatus, as opposed to Epinephelus itajara.
Currently, Epinephelus itajara is classed as being critically endangered on the IUCN's Red List of Endangered Species.
Another researcher, Dr Rachel Graham, added: "In light of our new findings, the Pacific goliath grouper should be treated with separate management and conservation strategies."
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