Butterflyfish Codexery

Sunburst butterflyfish

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Sunburst butterflyfish

Diego Delso · via Wikipedia: Sunburst butterflyfish · CC BY-SA 4.0

The sunburst butterflyfish is a marine species formally described in 1790 by Marcus Elieser Bloch.[1] Its body is yellowish brown with 1–2 broad lighter vertical bars and a black bar across the eye.[2] This fish is a native of the Indo-Pacific region and also occurs in the Galapagos Islands.[2]

Scientific classification

  1. KingdomAnimalia
  2. PhylumChordata
  3. ClassActinopterygii
  4. DivisionTeleostei
  5. OrderAcanthuriformes
  6. FamilyChaetodontidae
  7. GenusChaetodon
  8. GenusChaetodon
  9. SpeciesChaetodon kleinii

Named by Bloch, 1790

Close relatives

Other species of Chaetodon with a Codexery entry.

Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Sunburst butterflyfish (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 218738 (CC BY 4.0)

Conservation status

Least Concern (LC)

  1. LC▲ this species
  2. NT
  3. VU
  4. EN
  5. CR
  6. EW
  7. EX
Population trend
Not held in our sources — see the assessment
Assessment published
2010

Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category

Where the sunburst butterflyfish has been recorded

Where the sunburst butterflyfish has been recorded223 mapped locations from 7,326 GBIF occurrence records; marked places: Pacific OceanPacific Ocean

Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (7,326 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 30 inland records left out (institution coordinates).

Map: drawn by Codexery. Data: GBIF occurrence search (records CC0 / CC BY) · Natural Earth basemap (public domain) · place coordinates: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Biology and range

The sunburst butterflyfish is found at depths of 4–61 meters, usually in deeper lagoons, channels, and seaward reefs.[2] It swims singly or, particularly during breeding, in pairs.[2] This fish consumes a variety of food types, including soft coral polyps, algae, and zooplankton, making it an omnivore.[2] While its tendency to eat coral can be problematic in tanks, it also consumes Aiptasia sea anemones, which are often unwanted in marine aquariums.[3]

The coloration differs depending on location: fish from the western part of the range typically display a single beige bar, whereas those from the east show two white bars.[2] Eastern individuals sometimes exhibit many dotted horizontal stripes or an extra dark band located between the two pale bars.[2]

What the specialist sources record

The Saltcorner account notes the species is widespread from East Africa to Hawaii, north to southern Japan, and south to Lord Howe Island.[4] That same source states it can be maintained with other butterflyfish and even slightly more aggressive species if those are introduced later.[4] The World Register of Marine Species lists Chaetodon kleinii Bloch, 1790 as an accepted species in family Chaetodontidae, order Acanthuriformes.[5] GBIF records 8,417 occurrence records for this taxon as of 7 October 2026.[6]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Sunburst butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; "Order ACANTHURIFORMES (part 1): Families LOBOTIDAE, POMACANTHIDAE, DREPANEIDAE and CHAETODONTIDAE", The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database, 21 July 2020 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Sunburst butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Sunburst butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Chaetodon klenii", Saltcorner, 2012 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  4. "Chaetodon klenii", Saltcorner, 2012. facts only, no text reused. saltcorner.com
  5. World Register of Marine Species, Chaetodon kleinii (AphiaID 218738). CC BY 4.0. marinespecies.org
  6. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Chaetodon kleinii (taxon key 2385458). CC BY 4.0 (backbone); counts are facts. gbif.org

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Sunburst butterflyfish (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

Related entries

Same family (Chaetodontidae)

Bank butterflyfish Prognathodes aya, Chelmon marginalis Chelmon marginalis, Chelmon muelleri Chelmon muelleri, Forcipiger longirostris Forcipiger longirostris, Hemitaurichthys multispinosus Hemitaurichthys multispinosus

Named in this entry

Genus

More in Butterflyfish

Teardrop butterflyfishThreadfin butterflyfishChaetodon triangulumChaetodon ulietensisVagabond butterflyfishWest Australian butterflyfishChaetodon wiebeliYellow teardrop butterflyfishYellow-dotted butterflyfishYellowhead butterflyfishChaetodon zanzibarensisCopperband butterflyfish

Test yourself

Three questions drawn from this entry’s sources. Pick an answer to check it.

1. To which biological family does the sunburst butterflyfish belong?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Chaetodontidae.

2. Who first scientifically described the sunburst butterflyfish?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is Marcus Elieser Bloch.

3. In what year was the sunburst butterflyfish first scientifically described?

Correct.

Not quite. The answer is 1790.

Answers checked against the source article

Sources

Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.

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