Marine Life of #World's » #Butterflyfishes

Butterflyfishes mostly range from 12 to 22 cm (4.7 to 8.7 in) in length. The largest species, the lined butterflyfish and the saddle butterflyfish, grow to 30 cm (12 in). The common name references the brightly coloured and strikingly patterned bodies of many species, bearing shades of black, white, blue, red, orange, and yellow. Other species are dull in colour. Many have eyepots on their flanks and dark bands across their eyes, not unlike the patterns seen on butterfly wings. Their deep, laterally narrow bodies are easily noticed through the profusion of reef life. The conspicuous coloration of butterflyfishes may be intended for interspecies communication. Butterflyfish have uninterrupted dorsal fins with tail fins that may be rounded or truncated, but are never forked.

Generally diurnal and frequenting waters less than 18 m (59 ft) deep (though some species descend to 180 m (590 ft)), butterflyfishes stick to particular home ranges. These coralivores are especially territorial, forming pairs and staking claim to a specific coral head. Contrastingly, the zooplankton feeders form large conspecific groups. By night, butterflyfish hide in reef crevices and exhibit markedly different coloration.

Butterflyfishes are pelagic spawners; that is, they release many buoyant eggs into the water, which become part of the plankton, floating with the currents until hatching. The fry go through a tholichthys stage, wherein the body of the postlarval fish is covered in large, bony plates extending from the head. They lose their bony plates as they mature. Only one other family of fish, the scats express such an armored stage.
(source: wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterflyfish)

Eye-patch butterflyfish

Chaetodon adiergastos

cbpix (C) All rights reserved
Threadfin butterflyfish

Chaetodon auriga

Ian Scott (C) All rights reserved
Bluelashed butterflyfish

Chaetodon bennetti

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Foureye butterflyfish

Chaetodon capistratus

brian.gratwicke (CC: BY)
Redtail butterflyfish

Chaetodon collare

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Indian vagabond butterflyfish

Chaetodon decussatus

orlandin (C) All rights reserved
Saddle butterflyfish

Chaetodon ephippium

cbpix (C) All rights reserved
Blackwedged butterflyfish

Chaetodon falcula

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Peppered Butterflyfish

Chaetodon guttatissimus

Boris Pamikov (C) All rights reserved
Sunburst butterflyfish

Chaetodon kleinii

kaschibo (C) All rights reserved
Lined butterflyfish

Chaetodon lineolatus

orlandin (C) All rights reserved
Raccoon butterflyfish

Chaetodon lunula

stephan kerkhofs (C) All rights reserved
Oval butterflyfish

Chaetodon lunulatus

Luiz A. Rocha (C) All rights reserved
Blackback butterflyfish

Chaetodon melannotus

orlandin (C) All rights reserved
Scrawled butterflyfish

Chaetodon meyeri

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Spotfin butterflyfish (subadult)

Chaetodon ocellatus

Brian Gratwicke (CC: BY)

Spotfin butterflyfish (adult)

Chaetodon ocellatus

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Ornate butterflyfish (juvenile)

Chaetodon ornatissimus

NOAA Photo Library (CC: BY)
Ornate butterflyfish (adult)

Chaetodon ornatissimus

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Sunset butterflyfish

Chaetodon pelewensis

NOAA Photo Library (CC: BY)
Blueblotch butterflyfish

Chaetodon plebeius

Paul and Jill (CC: BY)