it occurs off northeastern New Zealand. It is also found in the Coral Sea off New Caledonia, Lord Howe Island, Norfolk Island and the Kermadec Islands. In the Indian Ocean it is thought to probably range widely along the northern coasts from Myanmar to Yemen. In the western Indian Ocean it occurs as far north is the Red Sea and from the Gulf of Aden off Somalia south to Madagascar, Réunion. Its range then extends around the Cape of Good Hope. It has not been confirmed to be present in the Persian Gulf. In the western pacific it is found off southern Japan, Korea, and China as far south as Taiwan, but it is absent from equatorial areas. In the western Atlantic it has been observed off Bermuda, Grand Cayman Island, Belize, and San Blas, Panama. In the eastern Atlantic it has been recorded from Saint Helena, Madeira, Ascension Island, and probably occurs around the Gulf of Guinea Islands and along the west African coast to South Africa. It is also found along Atlantic coast of northwestern Africa as far north as Portugal, but it has not been recorded from the Mediterranean. It has been recorded from Brazil. Habitat and biologyKyphosus bigibbus is found in shallow coral and rocky reefs, including exposed isolated, offshore reefs and around islands. They are frequently recorded in the surge zone, down to depths of . They are often recorded in mixed schools with other related species. The juveniles often hide among flotsam and can disperse for long distances among this floating material. It is a herbivore which feeds mainly on algae of the genera Sargassum and Turbinaria. FisheriesKyphosus bigibbus is not targeted by fisheries over much of its distribution but where it is a fisheries quarry it is valued as a foodfish. Species descriptionKyphosus bigibbus was first formally described by Bernard Germain de Lacépède in 1801 in volume 3 of Histoire naturelle des poissons'', Lacépède did not give a type locality but it is stated elsewhere as Fort Dauphin in Madagascar. References External links photo of Kyphosus bigibbus in iNaturalist bigibbus Fish described in 1801 Taxa named by Bernard Germain de Lacépède