A common and special sight on the Great Barrier Reef is the Coral Trout. Coral Trout are targeted by the fishing industry because they are a good eating fish and fetch a high price locally and overseas.
What many people don’t realise is that all Coral Trout start their life as females – changing their sex later in life. The exact trigger of the sex change is unknown but generally Coral Trout will transform from female to male when their length reaches (on average) approximately 42 cms. As a general rule smaller Coral Trout are female and larger ones are male.
These striking fish can live for as long as 16 years and tend not to stray from their chosen reef.
