Bumphead Parrotfish

Photo: Mark Rosenstein · CC BY-NC

Schools of up to 30 bumphead parrotfish roam the shallow reef crests of the Aleipata outer platforms, their repetitive head-ramming of Porites coral audible from metres away and producing distinctive white sand halos visible in satellite imagery. This species has been heavily overfished across most of the Pacific but persists in healthy numbers at Aleipata, likely owing to the site's isolation and the community marine protected area that covers the inner lagoon.