WHATSTHATFISH
Bony fish

Red Sea Raccoon Butterflyfish

Chaetodon fasciatus

Also known as: Coralfish, Diagonal Butterflyfish, Diagonal-lined Butterflyfish, Raccoon Butterflyfish, Raccoon Fasciatus Butterflyfish, Red Sea Butterflyfish, Striped Butterflyfish

LCLeast ConcernIUCN Red List, 2010
Adult
@bottleofscotch1 · Taba Heights, Egypt · September 20131 / 5
01

Overview

Found singly or in pairs, over reef flats rich in coral growth.
Western Indian Ocean - Gulf of Aden to Red Sea

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

Head & Mouth
eye stripe
Behaviour
pairssolitary

Tap any trait to see other fish that share it.

03

Habitat & where to find it

  • Range · Western Indian Ocean
  • Country only · 5
LIVES IN

Found singly or in pairs, over reef flats rich in coral growth.

04

Adult photos 5

05

Discussion 2

Comments are checked by a moderator before they appear.

2 comments

  • trevorf· 13 Feb 2013

    Thanks, I agree but can't work out how to change it????

  • fishx6Top Contributor· 13 Feb 2013

    We have changed it!

    Helpful
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FOR THE MARINE-BIOLOGY CURIOUS

Deep dive

Taxonomy

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classTeleostei
  4. orderAcanthuriformes
  5. familyChaetodontidae
  6. genusChaetodon
  7. speciesChaetodon fasciatus Forsskål, 1775

SourcesWoRMSFishBase

06

More in the family

Butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae)