Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840)
Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum, at Tulamben, Bali, Indonesia. Source: Klaus Stiefel / Flickr. License: CC by Attribution-NonCommercial
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.
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 |
|
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 |
Bumphead Parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840)
References
Allen, G.R. 1993. Fishes of Ashmore Reef and Cartier Island. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 44: 67-91
Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.
Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21.
Allen, G.R. & Steene, R.C. 1988. Fishes of Christmas Island Indian Ocean. Christmas Island Natural History Association, Christmas Island, Indian Ocean, 6798, Australia. 197p p.
Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp.
Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.
Bellwood, D.R. 1994. A phylogenetic study of the parrotfish family Scaridae (Pisces: Labroidea), with a revision of genera. Records of the Australian Museum Supplement 20: 1–86 DOI:10.3853/j.0812-7387.20.1994.51 Open access
Bellwood, D.R. 2001. Scaridae. pp. 3468-3492 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, T.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 6 pp. 3381-4218.
Bellwood, D.R. & Choat, J.H. 1989. A description of the juvenile phase colour patterns of 24 parrotfish species (Family Scaridae) from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Records of the Australian Museum 41: 1-41. DOI:10.3853/j.0067-1975.41.1989.134 Open access
Bellwood, D.R. & Choat, J.H. 1990. A functional analysis of grazing in parrotfishes (family Scaridae): the ecological implications. Environmental Biology of Fish 28: 189–214 https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00751035
Bellwood, D.R. & Choat, J.H. 2011. Dangerous demographics: the lack of juvenile humphead parrotfishes Bolbometopon muricatum on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 30: 549–554. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-011-0738-2
Bellwood, D.R., Hoey, A.S. & Choat, J.H. 2003. Limited functional redundancy to high diversity systems: resilience and ecosystem function on coral reefs. Ecology Letters 6: 281-285. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1461-0248.2003.00432.x
Bellwood, D.R., Hoey, A.S. & Hughes, T.P. 2012. Human activity selectively impacts the ecosystem role of parrotfishes. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 279: 1621-1629.
Chan, T., Sadovy, Y. & Donaldson, T.J. 2012. Bolbometopon muricatum. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012: e.T63571A17894276. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T63571A17894276.en. Downloaded on 06 December 2018.
Choat, J.H. & Bellwood, D.R. 1985. Interactions amongst herbivorous fishes on a coral reef: influence of spatial variation. Marine Biology 89: 221-234.
Choat, J.H., Clements, K.D. & Robbins, W.D. 2002. The tropic status of herbivorous fishes on coral reefs. 1. Dietary analyses. Marine Biology 140: 613-623.
Choat, J.H., Klanten, O.S., Van Herwerden, L., Robertson, D.R. & Clements, K.D. 2012. Patterns and processes in the evolutionary history of parrotfishes (Family Labridae). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 107: 529-557.
Choat, J.H. & Randall, J.E. 1986. A review of the parrotfishes (Family Scaridae) of the Great Barrier Reef of Australia with description of a new species. Records of the Australian Museum 38: 175-228. DOI:10.3853/j.0067-1975.38.1986.181
Comeros-Raynal, M.T., Choat, J.H., Polidoro, B.A., Clements, K.D., Abesamis, R., Craig, M.T., Lazuardi, M.E., McIlwain, J., Muljadi, A., Myers, R.F., Nañola Jr., C.L., Pardede, S., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B., Sanciangco, J.C., Stockwell, B., Harwell, H. & Carpenter, K.E. 2012. The likelihood of extinction of iconic and dominant components of coral reefs: the parrotfishes and surgeonfishes. PLoS ONE http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0039825
Donaldson, T.J. & Dulvy, N.K. 2004. Threatened fishes of the world: Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes 1840) (Scaridae). Environmental Biology of Fishes 70: 373.https://doi.org/10.1023/B:EBFI.0000
Dulvy, N.K. & Polunin, N.V.C. 2004. Using informal knowledge to infer human-induced rarity of a conspicuous reef fish. Animal Conservation 7: 365-374. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1367943004001519
Gladstone, W. 1986. Spawning behavior of the bumphead parrotfish, Bolbometopon muricatum at Yonge Reef, Great Barrier Reef. Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 33(3): 326-328. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02904171
Grant, E.M. 1991. Fishes of Australia. Brisbane : EM Grant Pty Ltd 480 pp.
Hamilton, R.J., Adams, S. & Choat, J.H. 2008. Sexual development and reproductive demography of the green humphead parrotfish (Bolbometopon muricatum) in the Solomon Islands. Coral Reefs 27: 153–163. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-007-0304-0
Hamilton, R.J. & Choat, J.H. 2012. Bumphead Parrotfish - Bolbometopon muricatum pp. 490–496, in Sadovy de Mitcheson, Y. & Colin, P.L. (eds) Reef Fish Spawning Aggregations: Biology, Research and Management. New York: Springer.
Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S.J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Checklist and new records of Christmas Island fishes: the influence of isolation, biogeography and habitat availability on species abundance and community composition. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 184–202 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/
Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S .J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Fishes of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands: new records, community composition and biogeographic significance. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 203–219 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/
Hoey, A.S. & Bellwood, D.R. 2008. Cross-shelf variation in the role of parrotfishes on the Great Barrier Reef. Coral Reefs 27: 37. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-007-0287-x
Hutchins, J.B. 1994. A survey of the nearshore reef fish fauna of Western Australia's west and south coasts — The Leeuwin Province. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement 46: 1-66 figs 1-6
Hutchins, J.B., Williams, D.McB., Newman, S.J., Cappo, M. & Speare, P. 1995. New records of fishes for the Rowley Shoals and Scott/Seringapatam Reefs, off north-western Australia. Records of the Western Australian Museum 17: 119-123
Kerry, J.T. & Bellwood, D.R. 2015. Competition for shelter in a high-diversity system: structure use by large reef fishes. Coral Reefs 35(1): 245-252, http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00338-015-136.
Kuiter, R.H. 1992. Tropical Reef-Fishes of the Western Pacific, Indonesia and Adjacent Waters. Jakarta : PT Gramedia Pustaka Utama 314 pp. pls.
Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Sydney, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers xvii, 434 pp.
Muñoz, R.C., Zgliczynski, B.J., Laughlin, J.L. & Teer, B.Z. 2012. Extraordinary aggressive behavior from the giant coral reef fish, Bolbometopon muricatum, in a remote marine reserve. PLoS ONE http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0038120
Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs.
Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs.
Roff, G., Doropoulos, C., Mereb, G. & Mumby, P.J. 2017. Mass spawning aggregation of the giant bumphead parrotfish Bolbometopon muricatum. Journal of Fish Biology 91: 354-361. doi:10.1111/jfb.13340
Streelman, J.T., Alfaro, M., Westneat, M.W., Bellwood, D.R. & Karl, S.A. 2002. Evolutionary history of the parrotfishes: biogeography, ecomorphology, and comparative diversity. Evolution 56: 961–971. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.0014-3820.2002.tb01408.x
Valenciennes, A. in Cuvier, G.L. & Valenciennes, A. 1840. Histoire Naturelle des Poissons. Paris : Levrault Vol. 14 464 pp. pls 389-420. See ref at BHL