| Citation |
Choat, J.H., Samoilys, M., Liu, M. & Robinson, J. 2018. Cephalopholis argus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T132781A100453441. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T132781A100453441.en. Downloaded on 16 May 2019. |
Description |
Indo-Pacific: Red Sea to Durban, South Africa and eastward to French Polynesia and the Pitcairn group, north to the Ryukyu and Ogasawara islands, south to northern Australia and Lord Howe Island. May be confused with Cephalopholis cyanostigma.
Geographic Range
NATIVE
Extant (resident)
American Samoa; Australia; British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago); Brunei Darussalam; Cambodia; China; Christmas Island; Cocos (Keeling) Islands; Comoros; Cook Islands; Djibouti; Egypt; Eritrea; Fiji; French Polynesia; French Southern Territories (Mozambique Channel Is.); Guam; Hong Kong; India; Indonesia; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Israel; Japan; Jordan; Kenya; Kiribati (Phoenix Is., Kiribati Line Is., Gilbert Is.); Macao; Madagascar; Malaysia; Maldives; Marshall Islands; Mauritius (Mauritius (main island), Rodrigues); Mayotte; Micronesia, Federated States of ; Mozambique; Myanmar; Nauru; New Caledonia; Niue; Northern Mariana Islands; Oman; Palau; Papua New Guinea; Philippines; Pitcairn; Réunion; Samoa; Saudi Arabia; Seychelles; Singapore; Solomon Islands; Somalia; South Africa; Sri Lanka; Sudan; Taiwan, Province of China; Tanzania, United Republic of; Thailand; Timor-Leste; Tokelau; Tonga; Tuvalu; United Arab Emirates; United States Minor Outlying Islands (Wake Is., US Line Is., Howland-Baker Is.); Vanuatu; Viet Nam; Wallis and Futuna; Yemen
Extant & Introduced (resident)
United States (Hawaiian Is.)
NUMBER OF LOCATIONS
UPPER DEPTH LIMIT
1 metres
LOWER DEPTH LIMIT
40 metres
Geographic Range in detail
FAO FISHING AREAS
Origin Locations
Native Pacific - western central
Native Pacific - northwest
Native Pacific - eastern central
Native Indian Ocean - western
Native Indian Ocean - eastern
Native Pacific - southwest
Native Atlantic - southeast
ESTIMATED AREA OF OCCUPANCY (AOO) (KM²)
CONTINUING DECLINE IN AREA OF OCCUPANCY (AOO)
EXTREME FLUCTUATIONS IN AREA OF OCCUPANCY (AOO)
ESTIMATED EXTENT OF OCCURRENCE (EOO) (KM²)
CONTINUING DECLINE IN EXTENT OF OCCURRENCE (EOO)
EXTREME FLUCTUATIONS IN EXTENT OF OCCURRENCE (EOO)
CONTINUING DECLINE IN NUMBER OF LOCATIONS
EXTREME FLUCTUATIONS IN THE NUMBER OF LOCATIONS
RANGE DESCRIPTION
This is the most widely distributed of the grouper species. It occurs from the Red Sea to South Africa, east to French Polynesia and the Pitcairn Islands group, including northern Australia, Lord Howe Island, and Japan (Craig et al. 2011). It was introduced into the Hawaiian Island reef system in 1950 (Randall 1987, Planes and Lecaillon 1998). It has been recorded to at least 40 m depth, but prefers depths between one to 10 metres (Craig et al. 2011).
Specifically, it has been recorded from the Red Sea, Gulf of Aqaba, Gulf of Aden, Oman, Socotra, east Somalia, eastern Africa to 28°S, Comoros, Madagascar, Seychelles, Aldabra, Réunion, Mauritius, Rodrígues, Chagos, Maldives, Laccadives (India), Sri Lanka, Andamans (India), west Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia (Sumatra, Bali, Sangakkaki, Borneo, east Indonesia, Minado, Togean Islands, Sulawesi, Flores, Komodo, Sunda, Raja Ampat, West Papua), Cocos-Keeling Islands, Christmas Island, Australia (Ashmore Island, Scott Reef, Rowley Shoals, NW Australian coast, Great Barrier Reef, Elizabeth and Middleton Reefs, Lord Howe Island), Philippines, Spratly Islands, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia (Chesterfields, Ouvéa), south Taiwan (Peng hu shan), Japan (Ryukyu Islands, Kawhisi-jima, south Japan, Izu Islands, Ogasawara), Palau, Federated States of Micronesia (Yap, Pohnpei, Ifalik, Chuuk, Kapingamarangi, Kosrae, south Mariana Islands), Northern Mariana Islands, Marshall Islands, United States Minor Outlying Islands (Wake Island), Fiji (including Rotuma Island), Tonga, Samoa, Tuvalu, Kiribati (Phoenix Islands, Line Island), French Polynesia (Society Islands, Tuamotu Islands, Gambier Islands, Marquesas Islands, Austral Islands, Rapa), and Pitcairn. China (Fujian, Guangdong, Hainan, Taiwan Strait, South China Sea). Records from Howland Island, Baker Island, Jarvis Island, Palmyra Atoll, Kingman Reef (B. Mundy pers. comm. 2008, R. Myers pers. comm. 2017).
Population
CURRENT POPULATION TREND
Stable
NUMBER OF MATURE INDIVIDUALS
POPULATION SEVERELY FRAGMENTED
No
CONTINUING DECLINE OF MATURE INDIVIDUALS
Population in detail
EXTREME FLUCTUATIONS
NO. OF SUBPOPULATIONS
CONTINUING DECLINE IN SUBPOPULATIONS
EXTREME FLUCTUATIONS IN SUBPOPULATIONS
ALL INDIVIDUALS IN ONE SUBPOPULATION
NO. OF INDIVIDUALS IN LARGEST SUBPOPULATION
DESCRIPTION
This is one of the most abundant medium-sized groupers in the Indo-Pacific. Estimates of abundance are variable by location, and range from 0.6 - 14.7 fish per 1,000 m2 (see attached table). It tends to have greater abundance in the Pacific than in the Indian Ocean. In Saudi Arabia, fisheries landings of this species ranged from 11 to 72 metric tonnes from 2000 to 2004 (www.fao.org). In the Maldives, there has been a slight reduction in average size since exploitation began (Sattar and Adams 2005). Despite heavy fishing pressure in areas such as Samoa, this species populations appear stable, with only one locality showing declines presumably due to fishing. According to a study in the Apo Island no-take marine reserve in the Philippines, C. argus abundance increased from 0.45 per 1,000 m2 in 1985 to 3.5 per 1,000 m2 in 2010, and comparable abundance levels were found in the vicinity of Sumilon Reserve (Russ and Cherh 2017, unpublished report). Hawaiian populations were established following introduction from Moorea-sourced individuals in 1957 (Randall 1987) and are thriving (Meyer and Dierking 2011, Donovan et al. 2013).
Habitat and Ecology
SYSTEM
Marine
HABITAT TYPE
Marine Neritic
GENERATION LENGTH (YEARS)
CONGREGATORY
MOVEMENT PATTERNS
CONTINUING DECLINE IN AREA, EXTENT AND/OR QUALITY OF HABITAT
Habitat and Ecology in detail
HABITAT AND ECOLOGY
This species inhabits coral reefs, especially exposed reef front areas. It primarily feeds on a variety of small and juvenile reef fishes (Meyer and Dierking 2011). The Peacock Grouper occurs in social groups comprised of a single male and haremic females. Male territory size is positively associated with fish size (Pears 2005). Each group occupies a specific area (up to 2,000 m²) that is defended by the territorial male and subdivided into secondary territories, each inhabited by a single female (Shpigel and Fishelson 1991). The demography of this species is highly plastic and shows great variation over its distribution, especially in terms of maximum longevity and maximum size. In American Samoa, maximum fork length ranged from 30.5 to 36 and maximum age from 21 to 28 years (J. Choat pers. comm.). In the Great Barrier Reef, maximum fork length was 47 cm and maximum age was 40 years (Pears 2005). In Moorea, maximum fork length was 32.8 cm and maximum age 25 years. In the Marquesas, maximum fork length was 36.5 cm and maximum age was 27 years (J. Choat pers. comm.). In the main Hawaiian Island chain, maximum fork length ranged from 41.1 to 49.6 cm and maximum age from 13 to 25 years with a mean of 19 (Donovan et al. 2013). In the Seychelles, maximum fork length was 37.8 cm and maximum age was 19 years (Pears 2005). In the Hawaiian islands, this species has a reduced generation time and rapid population turnover. It exhibits monandric protogyny in Hawaii, and spawns from May to October with an age and size at sexual maturity of 1.2 years and 20 cm fork length (Schemmel et al. 2016).
CLASSIFICATION SCHEME
Habitats Suitability Major importance
9. Marine Neritic 9.8. Marine Neritic - Coral Reef Suitable Yes
Threats
Biological resource use
Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources
Threats in detail
THREATS
Overfishing is a potential threat to this species on a localized level, and fishing pressure has been increasing in some areas.
CLASSIFICATION SCHEME
Threats Timing Stresses Scope Severity Impact score Invasive species Virus
5. Biological resource use 5.4. Fishing & harvesting aquatic resources 5.4.1. Intentional use: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest] Ongoing
2. Species Stresses 2.1. Species mortality
Unknown Unknown Unknown
5.4.2. Intentional use: (large scale) [harvest] Ongoing
2. Species Stresses 2.1. Species mortality
Unknown Unknown Unknown
Use and Trade
Food - human
Local: ?National: ?International: ?
Use and Trade in detail
USE AND TRADE
This is one of the most frequently speared groupers in reef fisheries in Pohnpei (Rhodes and Tupper 2007). Cephalopholis argus can cause ciguatera poisoning when ingested by humans at some islands in the Pacific region, such as French Polynesia, Marshall Islands and Hawaii (Randall 1980, 1987; Hokama et al. 1994, Bruslé et al. 1998). The frequency of ciguatera presence in this species is sufficient to inhibit consumption in some areas (Dierking and Campora 2009). |
