The oval butterflyfish (''Chaetodon lunulatus''), red-finned butterflyfish or redfin butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a

butterflyfish The butterflyfish are a group of conspicuous tropical marine fish of the family Chaetodontidae; the bannerfish and coralfish are also included in this group. The approximately 129 species in 12 genera are found mostly on the reefs of the Atlant ...

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 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 ...

, which is found in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, and the

Melon butterflyfish The melon butterflyfish (''Chaetodon trifasciatus'') 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 ...

, which is found in the Indian Ocean.

FishBase FishBase is a global species database of fish species (specifically finfish). It is the largest and most extensively accessed online database on adult finfish on the web.

008 008, OO8, O08, or 0O8 may refer to: * The Streetwear Brand @008us , inspired by Ian Fleming & Virgil Abloh *"030", the fictional 030 Agent of MI6 * '' 038: Operation Exterminate'', a 1965 Italian action film * '' Explosivo 030'' a 1940 Argentine c ...

''Chaetodon lunulatus''. Retrieved 2008-SEP-01.

Description and characteristics

The

blacktail butterflyfish 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 ...

(''C. austriacus''),

melon butterflyfish The melon butterflyfish (''Chaetodon trifasciatus'') 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 ...

(''C. trifasciatus''), and oval butterflyfish (''C. lunulatus'') are similar in coloration. The former has black

caudal Caudal may refer to: Anatomy * Caudal (anatomical term) (from Latin ''cauda''; tail), used to describe how close something is to the trailing end of an organism * Caudal artery, the portion of the dorsal aorta of a vertebrate that passes into the ...

and

anal fin Fins are distinctive anatomical features composed of bony spines or rays protruding from the body of a fish. They are covered with skin and joined together either in a webbed fashion, as seen in most bony fish, or similar to a flipper, as se ...

s, while the latter is an Indian Ocean species and has a more conspicuous back patch below the dorsal fin and a mainly yellow anal fin.Lieske, E. & Myers, R.F. (2004): ''Coral reef guide – Red Sea''. HarperCollins, London. ''Chaetodon lunulatus'' can grow up to 14 cm long. It has about 13-14 dorsal spines, 20-22 dorsal soft rays, three anal spines, and 18-21 anal soft rays. Together with the black-tailed and melon butterflyfishes, and probably also the somewhat aberrant Arabian butterflyfish ('' C. melapterus''), it makes up the

subgenus In biology, a subgenus (plural: subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between t ...

''Corallochaetodon''. They are probably quite close to the subgenus ''"Citharoedus"'' (the name is a junior homonym of a

mollusc Mollusca is the second-largest phylum of invertebrate animals after the Arthropoda, the members of which are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 85,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized. The number of fossil species is esti ...

genus), which contains the

scrawled butterflyfish The scrawled butterflyfish (''Chaetodon meyeri''), 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 P ...

(''C. meyeri''). Like that group, they might be separated in ''Megaprotodon'' if the genus ''

Chaetodon ''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 migh ...

'' is split up.

Habitat and range

Oval butterflyfish can be found in the Pacific Ocean from Japan and Australia to the North and South and Hawaii and the Tuamotu Islands to the East. They are benthopelagic and can be found in coral reefs in the tropics. They can be found at a depth of 3 to 30 meters in coral-rich lagoons and semi-protected seaward reefs. Small juveniles are secretive and hide in corals.

Ecology and behavior

Diet

The butterflyfish species feeds almost exclusively on hard corals.Pratchett, M.S. (2005). Dietary overlap among coral-feeding butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae) at Lizard Island, northern Great Barrier Reef. Marine Biology, 148, 373–382. doi: 10.1007/s00227-005-0084-4 The oval butterflyfish is a widespread corallivore and has been found to feed on 51 different types of coral, including ''

Acropora florida The branch coral (''Acropora florida'') is a species of acroporid coral found in the southwest and northern Indian Ocean, the central Indo-Pacific, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan and the East China Sea, Cook Islands and the oceanic west Pacifi ...

'', '' A. gemmifera'', '' A. hyacinthus'', ''A. intermedia'', and ''

Pocillopora damicornis ''Pocillopora damicornis'', commonly known as the cauliflower coral or lace coral, is a species of stony coral in the family Pocilloporidae. It is native to tropical and subtropical parts of the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Description ''P. damic ...

''.

Effects of coral bleaching

Coral bleaching has been shown to affect ''Chaetodon lunulatus''. A 2004 study found a noticeable decline in the physiological condition of the oval butterflyfish before and immediately after a coral bleaching event, possibly leading to reductions in survivorship.Pratchett, M.S., Wilson, S.K. and Baird, A.H. (2006), Declines in the abundance of Chaetodon butterflyfishes following extensive coral depletion. Journal of Fish Biology, 69, 1269-1280. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8649.2006.01161.x A 2006 study found a significant decline in the abundance of various species of butterflyfish (including ''C. lunulatus'') after a bleaching event in the Great Barrier Reef. Only obligate coral-feeding butterflyfishes, such as ''C. lunulatus'', and not facultative or non-coral feeders displayed reductions in abundance. It has been suggested that these declines were due to starvation and death resulting from a lack of coral prey.

Reproduction and mating

The oval butterflyfish is

oviparous Oviparous animals are animals that lay their eggs, with little or no other embryonic development within the mother. This is the reproductive method of most fish, amphibians, most reptiles, and all pterosaurs, dinosaurs (including birds), and ...

and has little sexual dimorphism.Yabuta, S. (2008). Signal function of tail-up posture in the monogamous butterflyfish (Chaetodon lunulatus): dummy experiments in the field. Ichthyological Research, 55, 299–302. doi: 10.1007/s10228-007-0027-9 In ''C. lunulatus'', both solitary living and pair bonding occurs amongst individuals.Nowicki, J. P., O'Connell, L. A., Cowman, P. F., Walker, S., Coker, D. J., & Pratchett, M. S. (2018). Variation in social systems within Chaetodon butterflyfishes, with special reference to pair bonding. PLOS ONE, 13 (4), e0194465. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194465 Studies have found that heterosexual pairing predominates, most likely to facilitate reproduction. Partner fidelity appears long-lasting, with one study reporting that individuals remained paired for up to seven years. In these pair-bonds, females feed more frequently, while males tend to take the leading position when swimming in tandem. The pairs display a high level of parallel and proximate (1.5m) swimming, and almost always remain in close range (4m).

Territoriality

Butterflyfish defend their territories against conspecifics. A tail-up display is a common antagonistic behavior in the ''Chaetodon'' species.Yabuta, S. (2000). Behaviors in agonistic interaction of the butterflyfish (Chaetodon lunulatus). Journal of Ethology, 18, 11–15. doi: 10.1007/s101640070018 It is performed towards conspecifics in territorial disputes as well as in non-agonistic interactions with a pair partner.Yabuta, S. (1999). Behavioral rules and tail-up display in extra- and intra-pair interactions of the butterflyfish, Chaetodon lunulatus. Journal of Ethology, 17, 79–86. doi: 10.1007/BF02769301 ''C. lunulatus'' may attack individuals when they do not perform the tail-up display. In territorial interactions, the fish display behavioral patterns such as encircling, staring, tail-up display, two-piled-tops fighting, parallel swimming, chasing, rushing, fleeing, and attacking. Fatal fighting only occurs over mating resources but not for resources such as shelter or food.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q3393835 Chaetodon Fish of Hawaii