Blacktail butterflyfish

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Blacktail butterflyfish
Bep chaetodon austriacus edit.jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Acanthuriformes
Family: Chaetodontidae
Genus: Chaetodon
Subgenus: Chaetodon (Corallochaetodon)
Species:
C. austriacus
Binomial name
Chaetodon austriacus
Rüppell, 1836
Synonyms [2]
  • Chaetodon trifasciatus austriacusRüppell, 1836
  • Citharoedus austriacus(Rüppell, 1836)
  • Mesochaetodon corallochaetodon austriacus(Rüppell, 1836)
  • Chaetodon klunzingeriKossman & Räuber, 1877
  • Chaetodon trifasciatus klunzingeriKossman & Räuber, 1877

The blacktail butterflyfish (Chaetodon austriacus), also known as black-tailed butterflyfish or exquisite butterflyfish, is a species marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is native to the western Indian Ocean but has reached the Mediterranean Sea as a Lessepsian migrant through the Suez Canal.

Contents

Distribution

The species is native to the Red Sea and southern Oman. [2] A single record was reported in 2011 in the vicinity of Tel Aviv (Israel), a likely migrant from the Red Sea. [3] [4]

Taxonomy

Together with the melon (C. trifasciatus) and oval (C. lunulatus) butterflyfishes and probably also the somewhat aberrant Arabian butterflyfish (C. melapterus), the blacktail butterflyfish makes up the subgenus Corallochaetodon. They are probably quite close to the subgenus called Citharoedus (that name is a junior homonym of a mollusc genus), which contains for example the scrawled butterflyfish (C. meyeri). Like that group, they might be separated in Megaprotodon if the genus Chaetodon is split up. [5] [6]

Description

The black-tailed butterflyfish is up to 14 cm long and is orange with thin, curved black stripes. Its anal fin and tail are black. The body of juveniles is whiter above with white bands on the tail. The melon butterflyfish (C. trifasciatus) and the oval butterflyfish (C. lunulatus) are similar in coloration but have less black on the caudal and anal fins. [7]

Ecology

Black-tailed butterflyfishes tend to be found in coral-rich areas between 0.5 and 20 m deep, on seaward reefs or in lagoons or bays. Adults are generally found in pairs patrolling a territory or range while juveniles are found among coral branches. This species grazes on coral polyps and sea anemone tentacles. [7]

Related Research Articles

<i>Chaetodon</i> Genus of fishes

Chaetodon is a tropical fish genus in the family Chaetodontidae. Like their relatives, they are known as "butterflyfish". This genus is by far the largest among the Chaetodontidae, with about 90 living species included here, though most might warrant recognition as distinct genera.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Threadfin butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The threadfin butterflyfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raccoon butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The raccoon butterflyfish, also known as the crescent-masked butterflyfish, lunule butterflyfish, halfmoon butterflyfish, moon butterflyfish, raccoon butterfly, raccoon, raccoon coralfish, and redstriped butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ornate butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The ornate butterflyfish, or clown butterflyfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish in the family Chaetodontidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diagonal butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The diagonal butterflyfish, also known as the Red Sea raccoon butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Red Sea and western Indian Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lined butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The lined butterflyfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish. a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae, one of the largest species in the genus Chaetodon. It has a wide range from the Red Sea to South Africa and as far east as southern Japan and Hawaii.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eritrean butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The Eritrean butterflyfish or crown butterflyfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is essentially just known from the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, but has been reported from East Africa. It grows up to 14 cm (5.5 in) in length. It is white with black chevrons, except for a red zone stretching from the aft dorsal fin across the caudal peduncle to the end of the anal fin. A red bar runs vertically through the caudal fin. There are black eyestripes and a black "crown" with white border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevron butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The chevron butterflyfish, also known as chevroned butterflyfish, triangulate butterflyfish or V-lined butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melon butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The melon butterflyfish or the Indian redfin butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indian Ocean from East Africa to Western Java. This is one species of a closely related group which includes the blacktail butterflyfish of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and the oval butterflyfish which is found in the western Pacific, from eastern coasts of the Indonesian islands to Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pearlscale butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The pearlscale butterflyfish, also known as yellow-tailed butterflyfish, crosshatch butterflyfish or Philippines chevron butterflyfish is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oval butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The oval butterflyfish, red-finned butterflyfish or redfin butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean from Eastern Indonesia to the Hawaiian islands. This is one species of a closely related group which includes the blacktail butterflyfish, which is found in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and the melon butterflyfish, which is found in the Indian Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Indian vagabond butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The Indian vagabond butterflyfish, also known as the blackened butterflyfish or black-finned vagabond, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indo-West Pacific, from the Maldives via India, Sri Lanka and the Andaman Sea to the westernmost portion of the Indonesian archipelago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mirror butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The mirror butterflyfish or oval-spot butterflyfish is a species of butterflyfish. It is found in the Indo-Pacific region from Indonesia to Japan and south to the Great Barrier Reef and Papua New Guinea. The species has also been reported from Madagascar, Mauritius and Réunion.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scrawled butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The scrawled butterflyfish, also known as Meyer's butterflyfish or the maypole butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philippine butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The Philippine butterflyfish, the Bantayan butterflyfish or panda butterflyfish,, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the western Pacific, from the Ryukyu Islands and Taiwan to Java and northwestern Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluelashed butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The bluelashed butterflyfish, also known as the eclipse butterflyfish, archer butterflyfish or Bennett's butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae, It is found in the Indo-Pacific.

<i>Chaetodon falcula</i> Species of fish

Chaetodon falcula, the blackwedged butterflyfish or falcula butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indian Ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mailed butterflyfish</span> Species of fish

The mailed butterflyfish, also known as the reticulated butterflyfish or black butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae, This species is found on reefs in the central and western Pacific Ocean. It can be found in the aquarium trade.

<i>Chaetodon larvatus</i> Species of fish

Chaetodon larvatus, commonly known as the hooded butterflyfish or orangeface butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and has been recorded twice recently in the eastern Mediterranean Sea off Palestine and Syria.

<i>Chaetodon melapterus</i> Species of fish

Chaetodon melapterus, the Arabian butterflyfish, blackfin butterflyfish, or black-finned melon butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the north western Indian Ocean.

References

  1. Rocha, L.A.; Craig, M.T.; Pratchett, M. (2010). "Chaetodon austriacus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species . 2010: e.T165634A6074982. doi: 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T165634A6074982.en . Retrieved 20 November 2021.
  2. 1 2 Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.). "Chaetodon austriacus". FishBase . December 2019 version.
  3. Atlas of Exotic Fishes in the Mediterranean Sea (Chaetodon austriacus). 2nd Edition. 2021. 366p. CIESM Publishers, Paris, Monaco.https://ciesm.org/atlas/fishes_2nd_edition/Chaetodon_austriacus.pdf
  4. Menachem Goran; Roy Gvili & Bella Galil (2011). "The reef-associating butterfly fish Chaetodon austriacus Rüppell, 1836 in the Mediterranean: The implication of behavioral plasticity for bioinvasion hazard assessment". Aquatic Invasions . 6 (supplement 1): s143–s145. doi: 10.3391/ai.2011.6.S1.032 .
  5. Fessler, Jennifer L.; Westneat, Mark W. (2007). "Molecular phylogenetics of the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae): Taxonomy and biogeography of a global coral reef fish family". Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution . 45 (1): 50–68. doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2007.05.018. PMID   17625921.
  6. Hsu, Kui-Ching; Chen, Jeng-Ping; Shao, Kwang-Tsao (2007). "Molecular phylogeny of Chaetodon (Teleostei: Chaetodontidae) in the Indo-West Pacific: evolution in geminate species pairs and species groups" (PDF). Raffles Bulletin of Zoology . Suppl. 14: 77–86. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-08-11.
  7. 1 2 Lieske, E.; Myers, R.F. (2004). Coral reef guide - Red Sea. London: HarperCollins. ISBN   978-0-00-715986-4.