Humphead wrasse

Naturally rare, and in high demand

Common Name		Humphead wrasse, Napoleon wrasse, Napoleon fish; Napoléon (Fr); Napoléon (Sp)
Scientific Name		Cheilinus undulatus
Location		Indo-Pacific
Status		IUCN Endangered (EN) A2bd+3bd CITES Appendix II

Background

This information has been reviewed by Dr. Yvonne Sadovy, Department of Ecology and Biodiversity, University of Hong-Kong.

The humphead wrasse is one of the largest coral reef fishes and occurs patchily throughout much of the Indo-Pacific region. Its late maturity, longevity, predictable spawning sites, sequential hermaphroditism (the fish is born as one sex and changes into the other sex later in its life) and natural rarity make it highly vulnerable to over-exploitation.

The species has been subjected to largely unmanaged fisheries that have resulted in consistent marked population declines in fished areas where the species is both protected and unprotected, and with localised extirpations at the edges of its range.

Physical Description

Adult humphead wrasse are identified by thick lips and a prominent hump on their forehead, while juveniles are a light green colour, with two black lines extending from behind the eye. The species changes in body form, colour and sex during its lifetime. However, the factors that control hermaphroditism are not known.

Adults are found on the reef during the day. At night they rest in reef caves and under coral ledges.

Size
This species reaches a maximum length of more than 2 metres and up to 190 kg in weight.

Habitat

Range States
American Samoa, Australia, British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago), Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Cook Islands, Djibouti, Egypt, Fiji, French Polynesia (Tuamotu Is.), Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Kiribati, Malaysia, Maldives, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Mozambique, Myanmar, New Caledonia, Niue, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Samoa, Seychelles, Somalia, Taiwan (Province of China), United States Minor Outlying Islands (Wake Is.)

Geographical Location
Indo-Pacific

Why is this species important?

The species is of traditional cultural importance in some Pacific countries.

Non-consumptive use of humphead wrasse is also particularly valuable to SCUBA diving operators. Some mature humphead wrasse can be found on the same stretch of reef for extended periods of time, creating special eco-tourism attractions for recreational divers of some range states such as Australia, Egypt, Indonesia and Malaysia.