Greasy rockcod
Epinephelus tauvina
Illustration: Bloom by Day
A pale greenish-grey cod covered in round dark spots whose centres are darker than their edges, often with one big black blotch under the back of the spiny dorsal. It lies up in a ledge by day and is slow to move until you are nearly on it.
how to recognise it
- round dark spots over the head and body, varying from dull orange-red to dark brown, with the CENTRES darker than the edges
- a large black blotch — or a group of black spots — at the base of the last four dorsal-fin spines
- pale greenish-grey or brown ground colour
- five sub-vertical dark bars may be showing
don’t confuse with
- Goldspotted rockcod — the goldspotted rockcod's spots are plain orange-brown without darker centres, and it carries about five angled H-shaped bars
- Blackspotted rockcod — the blackspotted rockcod has dark brown spots mixed with pale blotches and no single big blotch under the rear dorsal spines
Field marks read from FishBase, 2026-10-15. Our wording, their facts. Max size 100.0 cm TL.
facts
- habitat
- reef
- size
- ~60 cm, to 100 cm
Max size from FishBase (100.0 cm TL); the typical size is Bluebird’s, not from a cited source
- records near here
- 2 at 1 of 6 spots
A count of occurrence records near these spots, not abundance. Records are where someone looked.
when it has been recorded
JFMAMJJASOND
A gap means no record in the sample, not absence.
the rule
QLD — Min: 38cm Max: 100cm · Combined limit: 5 in total of all cod and grouper species
source
· verified 2026-10-10
no NSW rule listed — check before you dive
no closed season recorded for this species — that is not the same as open; check the official page
Rules checked 2026-10-13 against qld.gov.au
Rules change. Check before you dive.
Occurrence data: Atlas of Living Australia (ala.org.au), CC-BY 4.0.
Diver transect counts: Reef Life Survey (reeflifesurvey.com), CC-BY 4.0, supplied via ALA.
Target and protected species: Queensland tidal-water size and possession limits (qld.gov.au) and NSW saltwater bag and size limits plus threatened species lists (dpird.nsw.gov.au).
Habitat and size: Bluebird, approximate, from general knowledge. Not cited. FishBase is CC BY-NC and this app is commercial, so it is not used.
Description written for Bloom. RECORDS ARE WHERE SOMEONE LOOKED, NOT WHERE THE FISH ARE. A record count is a count of records near here and nothing else -- it is not abundance, and a species with few records is not rare. Absence of records is not absence of fish.
Diver transect counts: Reef Life Survey (reeflifesurvey.com), CC-BY 4.0, supplied via ALA.
Target and protected species: Queensland tidal-water size and possession limits (qld.gov.au) and NSW saltwater bag and size limits plus threatened species lists (dpird.nsw.gov.au).
Habitat and size: Bluebird, approximate, from general knowledge. Not cited. FishBase is CC BY-NC and this app is commercial, so it is not used.
Description written for Bloom. RECORDS ARE WHERE SOMEONE LOOKED, NOT WHERE THE FISH ARE. A record count is a count of records near here and nothing else -- it is not abundance, and a species with few records is not rare. Absence of records is not absence of fish.