Simeulue Island, Sumatra, Indonesia

[TimA]

Originally I posted this on Thailands "HumpheadParrotfish" thread but Indo is more appropriate:


How about a school of 15 to 20 Ragged-Tail Humpheads Parrots (chlorurus rhakoura). Their about half the size of regular Humpies. Indian Ocean Reef Guide says they have never been seen outside of Sri Lanka. But I have only the 2001 edition of IORG. Is there a later edition w/ updated info. Also World Reef Fish by same author as IORG and the FishBase has no info on them (chlorurus rhakoura).
Very interesting fish. Very pretty fish Dark Blue bodies with light blue trim on fins and tails. And that beautiful Ragged-Tail. Would like to know more about them.
I just did 40 days of the west coast of Simeulue Island, Sumatra. Usually its getting pounded by 20 ft waves. 80% of reefs are pristine. here is a partial (40%) list of critters ( I'm on a visa run and left my list at home:I have photos of all the fish I mention.


juv and adult:Yellowhead Snappers (macolor macularis)
juv and adults: Black and White snapper(macolar niger)
Blackpatch emperor (lethrinus harak)
Convict surgeonfish (acanthurus triostegus)
Phylidiella pustulosa nudibranch
Twoline Threadfin Bream (scolopsis bilineautus)
juv Big Eye Emperor (monotaxis grandoculis)
Red Spotted Coral Crab (trapezia rufopunctata)
Koran Angelfish (pomacanthus semicirculatus)
Masked Bannerfish (heniochus monoceros)
Raccoon butterflyfish (chaetodon lunula)
juv Slate Sweetlips (diagramma labiosum)
Mappa pufferfish (arothron mappa)
Humpback unicornfish (naso brachycentron)
Scissortail Dart Goby (ptereleotris evides)
Rag-Tail humphead parrotfish (chlorurus rhakoura)
Bird wrasse (gomphosus caeruleus)
YellowmarginTrigger(pseudobalistes flavimarginatus)
Picasso Trigger (rhinecanthus acueatus)
Picasso Trigger (rhinecanthus verrucosus)
Double Striped Soapfish (diploprion bifasciatum)
Ember parrotfishes (scarus rubroviolaceus)
Longnose Filefishes (oxymonacanthus longirostris)
Clown Trigger (balistoides conspicillum)
Horned Helmet (cassis cornuta)
Chromodoris Lochi nudibranch
Forster hawkfish (paracirrhites foresteri)
Clarks anenomefish (amphiprion clarkii)
Spotted Eagle Ray (aetobatus narinari)
ALSOw/ no scientific names
Multibar Cleaner Pipefish
Smith's Fang Blenny
Joshi's Magnificent Slug
White Tip reef Sharks
Decorator Crabs
Leopard Hawkfish
Monocle Hawkfish
.......
The most exciting finds for me on these newly dived sites are the Ragged-Tail humphead parrotfish and the purple colored tubular Club Anemone (2 of them) 1 with its 3 resident Clown Partner Shrimps

Photos, amateur as they are will be posted on my website soon.
But mostly for now I would like to know more about (chlorurus rhakoura)

Also, when I asked some locals about dynamite damage to a reef they said they caught the culprit, cut off his arms and then killed him.
Let this be a warning! Blowing up reefs Simeulue Island will not be tolerated.
This island is the Black Magic, Voodoo center of Asia.


Unfortunately I cannot access Scubaboard w/ my BlackBerry. so in a couple days I'm back to Simeulue and again out of touch.

Thanks Heaps for any info you have. I can be reached at Simeulue Island, Sumatra via my BlackBerry

 

[Shasta_man]

Can't help with any more info, but can we implement the simelue process for all dynamite fishers worldwide?

Glad to hear you had a great time. I love Indo too.

 

[TimA]

Thanx Shasta Man'
I have found bits and pieces about Muli Gireva (Chlorurus rhakoura)
Wrote to Lar's who photographed them (posted on FishBase) in Thailand but has not seen them since and never saw a large school.
Wrote to Dr. Randall in Hawaii, the person who presumably first spotted one in Sri Lanka.
Wrote to the CoralRealm that does not have them listed in their 1000 reef fish and of which Dr. Randall is in an advisory position.
Wrote to Debelius of Indian Ocean Reef Guide. He probably thinks I'm a nut.
I am waiting to see if Rubiah Tirta divers in Pulau Weh has ever seen this fish up their way.

It all either very interesting since I regularly saw schools of 15-20 and individuals on many occasions or maybe its just a dream and I am suffering from remote island rock fever... when I get back to Simeulue I'll check to see if I really do have those photos.
In the end its probably goin make a fool out of me. Your witnessing a man on a mission.

 

[Nishan]

Hi Tim,

I see these fish all the time in Sri Lanka. Will give you some info you may find useful. Bit short of time at the moment to type out a long reply. Sorry. Give me a couple of days. I'm also interested in getting an update on reef status in north Sumatra and Aceh. I was there in 2005 to assess post tsunami impacts on reefs.

Cheers,

Nishan

 

[TimA]

Thanx Nishan

They were reported at Simeulue in 2007 during a Wildlife Conservation Society survey of Simeulue Acehnese reefs....heres the report:
Ragged Tail Humphead Parrotfish at Simeulue Island

 

[Nishan]

Chlorurus rhakoura also known as the Sri Lankan humphed parrotfish, ragged-tail humphead parrotfish or Muli gireva (local Sinhalese) is a common fish in Sri Lanka although it was first scientifically described by Dr. J.E. Randall. The local name Muli means bump-head and gireva means parrot and is the generic term used for all parrotfish and some wrasses.

In Sri Lanka its often found on turbid coastal reefs and prefers rocky areas with ledges and boulders to coral rich habitats. In general parrotfish have short larval stages which does not facilitate distribution over a large area so recruitment would often be close to the original source population. Chlorurus rhakoura is generally found on reefs within 5km of the mainland in Sri Lanka and I have never seen it on clear coral rich offshore reefs. Its mostly found in small groups of 5-20 or so individuals and can get fairly large. I have seen animals that are at least 50cm or more. Its a distinct fish with the ragged tail and bulky body so cant misidentify easily.

All parrotfish are eaten in Sri Lanka although they are not among the more popular commercial fishers. They are mostly speared or caught in bottom set gill nets and consumed locally. This species seems to get speared often.

We dont have much information on its life history or population status but its a fairly common fish in Sri Lanka although I seem to see less of them than the past. I dont have statistics to back this up though so cant say its definitely the case.

The only other record i know of this fish is from a reef off Khao Lak in Thailand from a WWF post tsunami survey. So far its not been recorded from India or the Maldives. In the Maldives I doubt that it will be found as they do not have the habitat it prefers in SL. There are some distinct differences in fish assemblages between SL and Maldives with species preferring clear coral rich areas being more common in Maldives and species that prefer rocky areas and have a life stage that prefers estuaries or freshwater input being more common in Sri Lanka.

Hope this helps. Let me know if you have more specific questions.