Brownbarred Rockcod, Cephalopholis boenak (Bloch 1790)


Other Names: Brown-banded Cod, Brown-banded Rockcod, Brown-banded Rock-cod, Brown-barred Rockcod, Chocolate Hind

A Brownbarred Rockcod, Cephalopholis boenak, at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland. Source: Lyle Vail / Lizard Island Research Station. License: CC by Attribution

Summary:
A brownish to greenish-grey rockcod, usually with 7-8 dark bars on sides, a broad dark submarginal band and a narrow white margin on the dorsal, anal fins, and upper and lower caudal-fin lobes. Juveniles are yellowish on the rear of the body with a white stripe from the snout to the origin of the dorsal fin.

Cite this page as:
Dianne J. Bray, Cephalopholis boenak in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/Home/species/4409

Brownbarred Rockcod, Cephalopholis boenak (Bloch 1790)

More Info


Distribution

Recorded in Australia from Coral Bay, WA to Moreton Bay, QLD. Inhabits coastal reefs from East Africa to Palau and New Caledonia, and north to southern Japan.

Features

Meristic features: Dorsal fin IX,  15-17; Anal fin III, 8; Pectoral fin 15-17; Lateral line scales 46-51; Longitudinal scale series 86-100; Gill rakers 7-9 + 14-17.
Preopercle rounded, very finely serrate; no enlarged spines at angle, lower edge fleshy; characterized further by having ctenoid scales on body including abdomen; greatest depth of body 2.6-3.1 in SL; rounded caudal fin; pelvic fins not usually reaching anus, 1.6-2.1 in head length

Colour

Brownish to greenish grey with dusky vertical bands over the body. White margins and black sub-margins on the median fins.

Feeding

Carnivore - feeds mostly on fishes and crustaceans.

Fisheries

Heavily fished in some areas in Southeast Asia, and taken in handline fisheries in Australia. Juveniles are also collected for the aquarium industry.

Species Citation

Serranus boenak Bloch, 1790, Naturgesch. ausländisch. Fische: 43, pl. 226. Type locality: East India. 

Author

Dianne J. Bray

Brownbarred Rockcod, Cephalopholis boenak (Bloch 1790)

References


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. & 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.

Beukers-Stewart, B.D. & G.P. Jones. 2004. The influence of prey abundance on the feeding ecology of two piscivorous species of coral reef fish.Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 299: 155–184.

Bloch, M.E. 1790. Naturgeschichte der ausländischen Fische. Berlin : J. Morino Vol. 4 128 pp. pls 217-252.

Chan, T.T.C. & Sadovy, Y. 2002. Reproductive biology, age and growth in the Chocolate hind, Cephalopholis boenak (Bloch, 1790), in Hong Kong. Marine and Freshwater Research 53: 791-803.

Craig, M.T., Sadovy de Mitcheson, Y.J. & Heemstra, P.C. 2011. Groupers of the World: a Field and Market Guide. Grahamstown, South Africa : NISC Ltd 356 pp., Appendix 47 pp.

Donaldson, T.J. 1989. Pair spawning of Cephalopholis boenak (Serranidae). Japanese Journal of Ichthyology 35(4): 497-500.

Grant, E.M. 2002. Guide to Fishes. Redcliffe : EM Grant Pty Ltd 880 pp.

Heemstra, P.C. & Randall, J.E. 1993. Groupers of the World (Family Serranidae, Subfamily Epinephelinae). An annotated and illustrated catalogue of grouper, rockcod, hind, coral grouper and lyretail species known to date. FAO Fisheries Synopsis No. 125 Vol. 16. Rome: FAO. pp. 1-382

Heemstra, P.C. & Randall, J.E. 1999. Family Serranidae. pp. 2442-2548 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. 4 2069-2790 pp.

Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Biodiversity of shallow reef fish assemblages in Western Australia using a rapid censusing technique. Records of the Western Australian Museum 20: 247-270.

Johnson, J.W. 1999. Annotated checklist of the fishes of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 43(2): 709-762.

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)

Johnson, J.W. & Gill, A.C. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of Sweers Island, Gulf of Carpentaria. Gulf of Carpentaria Scientific Study Report. Geography Monograph Series. Brisbane: Royal Geographic Society of Queensland. pp. 239-260.

Larson, H.K. & Williams, R.S. 1997. Darwin Harbour fishes: a survey and annotated checklist. pp. 339-380 in Hanley, H.R., Caswell, G., Megirian, D. & Larson, H.K. (eds). The Marine Flora and Fauna of Darwin Harbour, Northern Territory, Australia. Proceedings of the Sixth International Marine Biology Workshop. Darwin : Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory 466 pp.

Liu, M. & Sadovy, Y. 2004. Early gonadal development and primary males in the protogynous epinepheline, Cephalopholis boenak. Journal of Fish Biology 65: 987-1002.

Liu, M. & Sadovy, Y. 2004. The influence of social factors on adult sex change and juvenile sexual differentiation in a diandric, protogynous epinepheline, Cephalopholis boenak. Journal of Zoology (London) 264: 239-248.

Liu, M. & Sadovy, Y. 2005. Habitat association and social structure of the chocolate hind, Cephalopholis boenak (Pisces: Serranidae: Epinephelinae), at Ping Chau Island, northeastern Hong Kong waters. Environmental Biology of Fishes 74: 9-18.

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press 707 pp.

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.

Randall, J.E. & Heemstra, P.C. 1991. Revision of Indo-Pacific groupers (Perciformes: Serranidae: Epinephelinae), with descriptions of five new species. Indo-Pacific Fishes 20: 1-332.

Russell, B.C. 1983. Annotated checklist of the coral reef fishes in the Capricorn-Bunker group, Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Special Publication Series 1: 1-184 figs 1-2

Russell, B.C. & W. Houston, 1989. Offshore fishes of the Arafura Sea. The Beagle 6(1): 69-84.

Sainsbury, K.J., Kailola, P.J. & Leyland, G.G. 1985. Continental Shelf Fishes of Northern and North-Western Australia. Canberra : Fisheries Information Service 375 pp. figs & pls.

Stewart BD & Jones GP. 2001. Associations between the abundance of piscivorous fishes and their prey on coral reefs: implications for prey-fish mortality. Marine Biology 138: 383–397.

Thierry, C., Sadovy, Y., Pollard, D., Samoilys, M., Kulbicki, M. & Carpenter, K. 2008. Cephalopholis boenak. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. . Downloaded on 05 March 2015.

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37311008

Biology:Capable of changing sex

Danger:IUCN Least Concern

Feeding:1-64 m

Fishing:Commercial, recreational fish

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:26 cm TL

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Species Maps

CAAB distribution map