sailfin grouper
Mycteroperca olfax
Badejo of rocky cliffs and lava reefs of the eastern Pacific. It is threatened, so the best practice is to recognize it and release it.
Also called: badejo-de-vela, badejo, garropa parda, sailfin grouper
- maximum
- 120 cm
- depth
- 15–40 m
who is the sailfin grouper
The badejo-de-vela belongs to the family Epinephelidae and reaches 120 cm. It lives in the eastern Pacific, at the Galápagos, Cocos Island and Malpelo, on rocky cliffs and lava reefs, usually between 15 and 40 m deep. Juveniles stay in shallow sandy lagoons, seagrass beds and mangrove lagoons. Adults eat mainly fish, and the size of prey grows with the predator. It is caught commercially. It is threatened, so the focus should be on recognizing it and releasing it.
Essential profile. Identification, where it occurs and rules, with data from FishBase and the cited regulations. Season, time of day, technique and bait are added once we have a good source for the sailfin grouper; in the meantime, see the similar species.
identification
Adults dark brown to olive-brown, with purplish and light brown blotches, or simply dark brown. There is a fully bright-yellow variation. Adults have posterior nostrils much larger than the anterior ones, and the preopercle has a serrated lobe at the corner. The location helps identify it: it occurs only at the Galápagos, Cocos Island and Malpelo. Compare with the olive grouper (Hyporthodus cifuentesi), which lives on the same islands but is light brown with a greenish sheen.
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Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Essential profile: the index uses a general fish model (weather, sun, moon and tide), without a season or time of day specific to this species.
where found
It lives only on islands of the eastern Pacific: the Galápagos (Ecuador), Cocos Island (Costa Rica) and Malpelo (Colombia). Records from Panama and Peru were discarded.
Habitat: Rocky cliffs and lava reefs, from 15 to 40 m; juveniles stay in shallow lagoons.
rules for the sailfin grouper
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency.
We found no species-specific rule beyond the region's general rules.
catch and release
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
No danger to anglers. It is threatened: handle with care, as it is a large fish, and release it promptly.
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.00603, b = 3.02; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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sources and references
Essential profile: size, length-weight, depth, countries and conservation come from FishBase and the cited regulations, and the texts were written from those sources. Season, time of day, sensitivities, technique and baits and lures are not included yet, because we did not find a good source for this species.
- scientific FishBase: Mycteroperca olfax (ficha da espécie)Size, length-weight, depth, habitat, distribution, biology, and IUCN status. Page checked on Oct 13, 2026.
- scientific FishBase: nomes populares de Mycteroperca olfaxNames by country and language.
