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Description |
Indo-West Pacific: Sulawesi (Indonesia) to Philippines and Ryukyu Islands.
Geographic Range [top]
Range Description: Acanthurus japonicus is found from southern Japan and southwards to Sulawesi, Indonesia. It is rarely found in Palau.
Countries occurrence:
Native:
Disputed Territory (Spratly Is.); Indonesia; Japan; Malaysia; Palau; Philippines; Taiwan, Province of China
FAO Marine Fishing Areas:
Native:
Pacific – northwest; Pacific – western central
Additional data:
? Lower depth limit (metres): 20
? Upper depth limit (metres): 5
Range Map: Click here to open the map viewer and explore range.
Population [top]
Population: Acanthurus japonicus was occasionally found in Calamianes Islands, Puerto Princesa, San Vicente and Taytay Philippines (Werner and Allen 2000, J. Pontillas pers. comm. 2010). It is common and abundant in the Philippines (R. Abesamis, C. Nanola and B. Stockwell pers. comm. 2010).
In the central Philippines, density and biomass of herbivorous fish in reserves had positive relationships with duration of reserve protection. Acanthuridae and Labridae (parrotfishes) were the major families that increased in biomass inside reserves with increased duration of reserve protection. Herbivore biomass inside reserves compared to fished sites was on average 1.4, 4.8 and 8.1 times higher at 0.5 to 4, 5 to 7 and 8 to 11 years of protection, respectively (Stockwell et al. 2009).
Current Population Trend: Unknown
Additional data:
? Population severely fragmented: No
Habitat and Ecology [top]
Habitat and Ecology: Acanthurus japonicus is classified as a grazer (Choat and Bellwood pers. obs. in Green and Bellwood 2009). The sexes are separate among the acanthurids (Reeson 1983). Acanthurids do not display obvious sexual dimorphism, males assume courtship colours (J.H. Choat pers. comm. 2010).
Systems: Marine
Use and Trade [top]
Use and Trade: Acanthurus japonicus is a component of the aquarium trade (Global Marine Aquarium Database accessed 19 March 2010). Online prices range from $49.99-$69.99 (L. Rocha pers. comm. 2010). It is also caught incidentally in artisanal fisheries.
Threats [top]
Major Threat(s): There are no major threats known for this species.
Surgeonfishes show varying degrees of habitat preference and utilization of coral reef habitats, with some species spending the majority of their life stages on coral reef while others primarily utilize seagrass beds, mangroves, algal beds, and /or rocky reefs. The majority of surgeonfishes are exclusively found on coral reef habitat, and of these, approximately 80% are experiencing a greater than 30% loss of coral reef area and degradation of coral reef habitat quality across their distributions. However, more research is needed to understand the long-term effects of coral reef habitat loss and degradation on these species populations. Widespread coral reef loss and declining habitat conditions are particularly worrying for species that recruit into areas with live coral cover, especially as studies have shown that protection of pristine habitats facilitate the persistence of adult populations in species that have spatially separated adult and juvenile habitats (Comeros-Raynal et al. 2012).
Conservation Actions [top]
Conservation Actions: There are no species-specific conservation measures in place for this species. Its distribution overlaps several marine protected areas in parts of its range.
Citation: Abesamis, R., Clements, K.D., Choat, J.H., McIlwain, J., Myers, R., Nanola, C., Rocha, L.A., Russell, B. & Stockwell, B. 2012. Acanthurus japonicus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2012: e.T177977A1508957. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012.RLTS.T177977A1508957.en. Downloaded on 05 September 2018.
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