WHATSTHATFISH
Bony fish

Bluespot Butterflyfish

Chaetodon plebeius

Also known as: Blueblotch Butterflyfish, Blue-blotched Butterflyfish, Bluedash Butterflyfish, Coral Butterflyfish, Coralfish, Grey-blotched Butterflyfish, Two-spot Coralfish

LCLeast ConcernIUCN Red List, 2010
Adult
@fishx6 · North Horn - Great Barrier Reef, Australia · July 20091 / 26
01

Overview

Found singly or in pairs, over shallow coastal waters, of lagoons and outer reefs, rich in coral growth.
They feed on coral polyps from Acropora corals.

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.

02

How to identify

COLOURS
Head & Mouth
eye stripe
Behaviour
pairssolitary

Tap any trait to see other fish that share it.

03

Habitat & where to find it

  • Range · Western Pacific
  • Exact location · 2
  • Country only · 24
LIVES IN

Found singly or in pairs, over shallow coastal waters, of lagoons and outer reefs, rich in coral growth.

04

Adult photos 26

05

Discussion 1

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1 comment

  • joacim· 5 Apr 2014

    Really interesting information about this specie. Butterfly fish is really beautiful. I do understand why they are such a popular aquarium fish. Pretty hard to maintain, but as you get a hang of it, its really nice!

ALL STAGES
FOR THE MARINE-BIOLOGY CURIOUS

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Taxonomy

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classTeleostei
  4. orderAcanthuriformes
  5. familyChaetodontidae
  6. genusChaetodon
  7. speciesChaetodon plebeius Cuvier, 1831

SourcesWoRMSFishBase

06

More in the family

Butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae)