Black musselcracker


The black musselcracker is a South African species of marine fish in the family Sparidae. It is the only species of its genus Cymatoceps. It reaches in length and almost in weight. It is found in coastal rocky areas to depths of, and feeds on hard-shelled invertebrates such as crabs and sea urchins.
The Head of the black musselcracker is a delicate dish in some areas in India and South Africa. Because the head is well sought after, this species experiences a lot of over harvesting, which diminishes its chances of a stable population. The reason that black musselcracker is vulnerable to over harvesting is mainly because they have a slow growth rate, which means that they are most likely being harvested before they are old enough to reproduce.
As a result of over harvesting the black musselcracker, there are now fishing regulations to protect this species. The first rule is that you are only allowed to catch one black musselcracker per person, per day. Also, the black musselcracker must be 50 cm in total length to be able to be kept. Because of these new regulations, in some regions of South Africa, black musselcracker populations are on the rise.