Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840)

Other Names: Double-headed Parrotfish, Green Humphead Parrotfish, Humphead Parrotfish, Hump-head Parrotfish

Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum, at Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia. Source: Klaus Stiefel / Flickr. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial

Summary:

Named for the prominent hump on the forehead, the Giant Bumphead Parrotfish is the largest known parrotfish - and the largest coral predator. This species is an important reef bioeroder - sand-makers on coral reefs.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2020, Bolbometopon muricatum in Fishes of Australia, accessed 25 Apr 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/387

Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840)

More Info

Distribution	Ningaloo Reef and offshore reefs of Western Australia, and the far northern Great Barrier Reef, and reefs in the Coral Sea, to the Swain Reef Group and Townshend Island, Queensland; also the territories of Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the Eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere the species is widespread in the tropical Indo-West Pacific - from the Red Sea eastwards to French Polynesia, north to Taiwan, southern Japan, and Wake Island, south to northern Australia and New Caledonia. Occurs in small to large aggregations on outer lagoon and seawards reefs, and will also forage on outer reef flats at low tide.
Features	Dorsal fin IX, 10; Anal fin III, 9; Pectoral fin 16-17; Median predorsal scales 2-4 (may be obscured by hump). Body depth 2.0-2.5 in SL, depth increasing with growth; head profile steep, adults with a prominent bump on forehead (evident at least 25 cm TL); teeth with nodules.
Size	Grows up to 1.5 m in length and 75 kg in weight.
Feeding	Feeds mostly on live corals, but also consumes benthic algae. Individuals either bite off large chunks of coral with their powerful jaws and fused teeth, or use their large head to ram corals, breaking them into smaller pieces. David Bellwood at James Cook University, Townsville, estimates that a large Bumpdhead Parrotfish may consume as much as 5 tonnes of reef in one year - creating tonnes of coral reef sand in the process.
Biology	Spawns in large schools on outer reefs during summer months.
Fisheries	Heavily fished in most parts of its range.
Conservation	IUCN Red List : Vulnerable Although once considered common or abundant throughout much of its range, the species is now considered to be rare in many areas, due primarily to fishing pressure in many parts of its range.
Species Citation	Scarus muricatus Valenciennes in Cuvier & Valenciennes 1840, Histoire Naturelle des Poissons Vol. 14: 208, pl. 402. Type locality: Java.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2020
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840)

References

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