Bommie Cod

By Bob Mosse

Bommie cod Cephalopholis cyanostigma. Photo by CRC Reef

The bommie cod Cephalopholis cyanostigma is a predator of small reef fish, as well as prey for a number of commercially important species, such as coral trout. This makes bommie cod an important biological signpost for management of commercial exploited fish. Bommie cod are also fished by both artisanal and commercial fishers in other countries, following declines of larger groupers such as coral trout and barramundi cod. There is now some evidence that bommie cod could become a target for Queensland line fishers in the future.

Research from the Effects of Line Fishing team at CRC Reef confirmed that bommie cod is one of the oldest-living groupers (up to 46 years) and has an extended spawning season which lasts about 7 months. Bommie cod also grow quickly in early life (until they are about 10 years old) and have a late onset of sexual maturity. These characteristics could make them extremely vulnerable to overfishing.

Bommie cod also undergo a sex change from female to male during their lifetime. Males usually make up a small proportion of the population (0.4 males:1 females), and are generally larger than the females. If fishing reduces the number of males in a population, the ability to fertilise eggs could be decreased with potential disruption to the sustainability of the population. Therefore, careful management of this small grouper is necessary to ensure sustainability of bommie cod populations if it became a target for Queensland line fishers.