Description

Also known as Coralfish, Crown Butterfly, Eritrean Butterflyfish, Redback Butterfly, Redback Butterflyfish, Red-backed Butterflyfish, Red Sea Chevron Butterflyfish, Red Sea Pearlscale Butterflyfish, Red-tailed Butterflyfish.

Found singly, pairs, or in small schools, over coral and rubble areas of reefs, rich in coral growth.
They feed on algae, christmas-tree worms, coral polyps, small crustaceans, and gorgonians.
Length - 14cm
Depth - 1-65m
Western Indian Ocean - Red Sea to Gulf of Aden

Replaced by
Chaetodon madagaskariensis in the Indian Ocean
http://www.whatsthatfish.com/fish/madagascar-butterflyfish/1491
Chaetodon mertensii in the Pacific
http://www.whatsthatfish.com/fish/yellowback-butterflyfish/1508
Chaetodon xanthurus in the Western Pacific
http://www.whatsthatfish.com/fish/crosshatch-butterflyfish/3417

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. (edit) Ref: https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Chaetodon-paucifasciatus