Classification / Names Common names | Synonyms | Catalog of Fishes (gen., sp.) | ITIS | CoL | WoRMS | Cloffa

Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Perciformes (Perch-likes) > Scaridae (Parrotfishes) > Scarinae
Etymology: Bolbometopon: Greek, bolbos-ou = onion + Greek, metopon = brow (Ref. 45335).

Environment / Climate / Range Ecology

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 1 - 40 m (Ref. 90102). Tropical, preferred 28°C (Ref. 107945); 30°N - 24°S

Distribution Countries | FAO areas | Ecosystems | Occurrences | Point map | Introductions | Faunafri

Indo-Pacific: Red Sea and East Africa to Samoa and the Line Islands, north to the Yaeyama and Wake islands, south to the Great Barrier Reef and New Caledonia.

Size / Weight / Age

Maturity: L_m ? range ? - ? cm
Max length : 130 cm TL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9710); common length : 70.0 cm SL male/unsexed; (Ref. 9793); max. published weight: 46.0 kg (Ref. 2334)

Short description Morphology | Morphometrics

Dorsal spines (total): 9; Dorsal soft rays (total): 10; Anal spines: 3; Anal soft rays: 9. Median predorsal scales 2 to 4 (may be obscured by hump); scales on cheek scale rows 1(4-6), 2(3-6), 3(1-2) (Ref. 9793). Sometimes confused with the humphead wrasse or other 'humphead' parrotfishes (Ref. 1602). Unlike the wrasse, it has a vertical head profile, and unlike other parrotfishes, it is uniformly covered except for the leading edge of the head which is often light green to pink, and has a nodular outer surface to its beak (Ref. 1602). The primary phase is a dull gray with scattered white spots, gradually becoming uniformly dark green (Ref. 1602).

Juveniles found in lagoons; adults in clear outer lagoon and seaward reefs up to depths of at least 30 m (Ref. 9710). Usually in small groups. Feeds on benthic algae, live corals (Ref. 9710) and shellfishes (Ref. 58784). May ram its head against corals to facilitate feeding (Ref. 9710). Sleeps in caves and often in shipwrecks at night (Ref. 48636). The largest and wariest of the parrotfishes. Vulnerable to overfishing (Ref. 9710).

Life cycle and mating behavior Maturity | Reproduction | Spawning | Eggs | Fecundity | Larvae

Oviparous, distinct pairing during breeding (Ref. 205). Also Ref. 103751.

Main reference Upload your references | References | Coordinator : Westneat, Mark | Collaborators

Randall, J.E., G.R. Allen and R.C. Steene, 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, Hawaii. 506 p. (Ref. 2334)

IUCN Red List Status (Ref. 115185)

Vulnerable (VU) (A2d)

CITES (Ref. 94142)

Not Evaluated

Threat to humans

Harmless

Human uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: commercial

FAO(fisheries: production; publication : search) | FisheriesWiki | Sea Around Us

More information

Countries
FAO areas
Ecosystems
Occurrences
Introductions
Stocks
Ecology
Diet
Food items
Food consumption
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Common names
Synonyms
Metabolism
Predators
Ecotoxicology
Reproduction
Maturity
Spawning
Fecundity
Eggs
Egg development

Age/Size
Growth
Length-weight
Length-length
Length-frequencies
Morphometrics
Morphology
Larvae
Larval dynamics
Recruitment
Abundance

References
Aquaculture
Aquaculture profile
Strains
Genetics
Allele frequencies
Heritability
Diseases
Processing
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Collaborators
Pictures
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Sounds
Ciguatera
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Otoliths
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Bolbometopon muricatum (Valenciennes, 1840)