Chaetodon lunulatus
Redfin Butterflyfish
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Chordata
Class
Actinopterygii
Order
Perciformes
Family
Chaetodontidae
Genus
Chaetodon
Species
Chaetodon lunulatus
Colours
Distinguishing features
A small to medium sized pinkish-yellow fish with a series of horizontal purple lines on the body, and black stripes through the eye, ventral fin and tail.
Size
- Up to 15 cm (Standard length)
Depth range
- Depth range data is not yet available.
Synonyms
Similar taxa
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Animalia:
Melon Butterflyfish (species: Chaetodon trifasciatus)
FishBase notes that Randall (as a pers. comm. in 1995) considers that Chaetodon trifasciatus is found only in the Indian Ocean with Chaetodon lunulatus replacing it in the Pacific. Records of Chaetodon trifasciatus from Lizard Island are thus likely to be Chaetodon lunulatus. The species are distinguished by the colour of the caudal peduncle: yellow in Chaetodon trifasciatus and white in Chaetodon lunulatus (reference in FishBase, January 2012). -
Animalia:
Melon Butterflyfish (species: Chaetodon trifasciatus)
Chaetodon lunulatus ����is widespread in the Pacific and extends into the eastern Indian Ocean while Chaetodon trifasciatus is found only in the Indian Ocean. Both species occur at Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean and they hybridise there. The species are distinguished by the colour of the caudal peduncle (yellow in Chaetodon trifasciatus, white in Chaetodon lunulatus) and by the dark eyestripe continuing over the head in Chaetodon lunulatus but not in Chaetodon trifasciatus (Montanari et al, 2011). Older records of Chaetodon trifasciatus from Lizard Island are thus likely to be misidentified specimens of Chaetodon lunulatus.
Comments
Chaetdon lunulatus Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 is a valid name. Chaetodon lunulatus Shaw, 1803 is a different species, a synonym of Chaetodon lunula (Lacepede, 1802) (ITIS, 9 May 2012)
by Anne Hoggett
Distribution
©Atlas of Living Australia: Australian distribution
Distribution and habitat preferences
Areas of rich coral growth.
Found in most reef habitats around the island.
Behaviour
The Redfin Butterflyfish is specialist hard-coral feeder, taking polyps from a wide range of coral taxa including Acroporid, Pocilloporid, and Poritid corals. It is usually seen near areas of good hard coral cover, and upon maturation fish form monagamous pairs which remain together thereafter.
Web resources
References
- Bellwood, D.R., S. Klanten, P.F. Cowman, M.S. Pratchett, N. Konow and L. van Herwerden (2009). Evolutionary history of the butterflyfishes (f: Chaetodontidae) and the rise of coral feeding fishes, Journal of Evolutionary Biology, doi 10.1111: j1420-9101200901904x. LIRS catalog number 1348.
- Berumen, M.L. (2005). The importance of juveniles in modelling growth: butterflyfish at Lizard Island, Environmental Biology of Fishes, 72: 409-413. LIRS catalog number 996.
- Berumen, M.L. (2006). Influence of resource availability on life-history traits in coral-feeding butterflyfishes (Pisces: Chaetodontidae), Ph.D. thesis, James Cook University, Australia. LIRS catalog number 987.
- View all references