Description

Also known as Barberfish, Barber Butterflyfish, Blacknose Butterflyfish, Butterfly Barber, Coralfish.

Found in pairs and large schools, over coral and rocky reefs rich in coral growth.
They feed on algae, small crustaceans, gastropods and parasites from other fish.
Length - 20cm
Depth - 6-40m
Widespread Eastern Pacific

Butterflyfishes have very fine hair like teeth that enable them to pick out small organisms inaccessible to most other fish for eating.
They thrive mainly on a diet of coral polyps, tentacles of featherdusters and Christmas-tree worms. As these food sources all zap back into their shells, butterflyfishes need to be able to hover motionless while picking at the coral and to dart swiftly over short distances to get the worm before it retracts. They do this by using their Pectoral fins as oars to brake, sprint, turn and even reverse. Ref: https://www.fishbase.in/summary/12310