Let $G=(V,E)$ be a finite graph, and let $M(G)$ be its cycle matroid on ground set $E$. A subset $C \subset E$ is a cocircuit of $M(G)$, equivalently a circuit of the dual matroid $M(G)^*$, if and only if $C$ is a bond of $G$, that is, a nonempty cut $\delta_G(X)$ that is minimal under inclusion among nonempty cuts of $G$.