Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis (common names include chevron tang, black surgeonfish, Hawaiian bristletooth, Hawaiian kole and Hawaiian surgeonfish) is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the familyAcanthuridae. It is found in the tropical Pacific Ocean.
Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis has a maximum published total length of 25cm (9.8in).[4] The dorsal fin is supported by 8 spines and between 27 and 29 soft rays, and the anal fin is supported by 3 spines and 25 or 26 soft rays. Adults look black from a distance, but upon close inspection, one sees that the uniform colour is broken by many thin green longitudinal stripes. Juveniles have very different color patterns from adults on the flanks, as they are of a bright orange-red color overall, and have many dark chevron markings (for this reason, one of the common names of this species is chevron tang). Juveniles also have deeper bodies.
Distribution and habitat
Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis has a wide distribution in the tropical Pacific Ocean, from the Ryukyu Islands of southern Japan in the west to as far as Hawaii in the east, through most of Micronesia and French Polynesia (and as far south as the Pitcairn Islands and Rapa Iti).[1] This is an uncommon species of seaward reefs, both rock and coral reefs, with the juveniles typically occurring in deeper waters rich in corals.[4]
Utilization
Ctenochaetus hawaiienis is popular in the aquarium trade due to the color patterns of the juveniles. It is the fifth most exported aquarium fish in Hawaii.[1]
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
