Red hind Epinephelus guttatus Vocal Repertoire Characterization, Behavior and Temporal Patterns

Passive acoustic monitoring provides a method for studying grouper courtship associated sounds (CAS). For Red Hind (Epinephelus guttatus), this approach has documented spatio—temporal patterns in their spawning aggregations. This study described vocalizations produced by E. guttatus and their respective behavioral contexts in field and laboratory studies. Five sound types were identified, which included 4 calls recorded in captivity and one sound recorded in the wild, labeled as Chorus. Additionally, the Grunt call type recorded was presumed to be produced by a female. Call types consisted of variations and combinations of low frequency (50—450 Hz) pulses, grunts and tonal sounds in different combinations. Common call types exhibited diel and lunar oscillations during the spawning season, with both field and captive recordings peaking daily at 1800 AST and at 8 days after the full moon.