🐠 Masked Grouper (Gracila albomarginata)
Curved Dark Bars and a White Flank Patch • A Patch That Glows Blue in Natural Light • An Uncommon Solitary Showpiece
 
📋 The Masked Grouper, also known as the Thinspine, White-Margined, or Slenderspine Grouper, has a distinctive greenish-to-reddish-brown body marked with narrow, curved dark bars, a dark spot at the base of the tail, and a square white patch on the upper flank that appears blue in natural light.
It lives on reefs from northern Mozambique to French Polynesia, and north to Okinawa, at depths of 15 to 120 metres, and it's uncommon in the trade. It's a solitary, territorial species best kept alone or with large, robust fish. Every Masked Grouper we ship is feeding, and live glass shrimp or small fiddler crabs are a great first food in a new tank. It has a naturally low metabolism, so it needs feeding only every other day once established.
It reaches up to 40cm, so plan on at least 470L. It's not reef safe: it will eat ornamental fish and invertebrates small enough to fit in its mouth, so it suits a fish-only or FOWLR system.
 
💡 Highlights
🎨 Curved Dark Bars, White Flank Patch: A distinctive marking that glows blue in natural light
💎 Uncommon in the Trade: A distinctive find for fish-only and FOWLR keepers
☝️ Solitary and Territorial: Best on its own
🍽️ Low Metabolism: Fed every other day
🪸 Not Reef Safe: Eats ornamental fish and invertebrates it can fit in its mouth