JEWFISH

any of several large fishes of the sea bass (q.v.) family (Serranidae), especially Epinephelus itajara, found on the Atlantic coast of tropical America. This species sometimes attains a length of 2.5 metres (8 feet) and a weight of about 320 kilograms (700 pounds). The adult is dull olive-brown with faint spots and bands. Adult jewfish are usually solitary and typically remain in the same area for extended periods. The related south Pacific jewfish (E. lanceolatus) may reach 3.75 metres in length. The Warsaw grouper (E. nigritus), living in the Atlantic between South Carolina and Brazil, and the giant sea bass (Stereolepis gigas) from the Pacific, off California and Baja California, are both occasionally called jewfish. They grow to about 2.2 metres and 220 kilograms. In Australia the name jewfish is given to Johnius antarctica and J. diacanthus on the east coast and to Glaucosoma hebraicum on the west coast.