Banded Butterflyfish
Chaetodon striatus
Chevron butterflyfish
Chaetodon trifascialis
About
This butterflyfish stakes out a single coral head and rarely leaves it, feeding almost entirely on the coral itself. Its close bond with table and staghorn corals makes it a useful sign of healthy reef.
Also known as: chevroned butterflyfish, chevroned butterflyfish, chevron butterflyfish, rightangle butterflyfish, triangulate butterflyfish, v-lined butterflyfish, triangulate butterflyfish, redfin butterflyfish, chevron butterflyfish, rightangle butterflyfish, v-lined butterflyfish, oval butterflyfish, chevroned butterflyfish, right-angled butterfly-fish, chevron butterflyfish, right-angled butterfly-fish
- Length
- 18 cm
- Depth
- up to 30 m
How to tell it apart
It is often mixed up with the melon butterflyfish, the three-striped butterflyfish, or the three-banded butterflyfish. This is the only one of the four with fine, V-shaped chevron lines covering the whole body, rather than plain stripes or bands.
Appearance
Its body is pale and elongated, covered in narrow dark chevron (V-shaped) markings. The tail is black with a yellow rear edge, and a black band with pale edges runs through the eye. Juveniles look different: they have a broad black band running from the rear of the dorsal fin to the rear of the anal fin, with a yellow tail base. It reaches a maximum length of 18 cm.
Habitat
It lives on semi-protected seaward reefs and shallow lagoon reefs, closely tied to stands of tabular and staghorn Acropora coral, from about 2 to 30 m, usually shallower than 10 m.
Did you know?
It looks so different from other butterflyfish, being long-bodied and changing pattern completely as it grows, that scientists placed it alone in its own subgroup, Megaprotodon.
Log it in Into the Blue
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