Threadfin butterflyfish
Last updated
Bernard E. Picton BernardP · via Wikipedia: Threadfin butterflyfish · CC BY-SA 4.0
It reaches up to 23 cm in length.[1] The marine fish Chaetodon auriga belongs to the family Chaetodontidae, according to the World Register of Marine Species.[2] According to Bray's description, this fish has a white body with chevron markings, bright yellow fins, and a black spot on the rear dorsal fin.[3]
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassActinopterygii
- DivisionTeleostei
- OrderAcanthuriformes
- FamilyChaetodontidae
- GenusChaetodon
- GenusChaetodon
- SpeciesChaetodon auriga
Named by Forsskål, 1775
Close relatives
Other species of Chaetodon with a Codexery entry.
- Indian vagabond butterflyfish Chaetodon decussatus
- Vagabond butterflyfish Chaetodon vagabundus
- Banded butterflyfish Chaetodon striatus
- Black butterflyfish Chaetodon flavirostris
- Blackback butterflyfish Chaetodon melannotus
- Blacktail butterflyfish Chaetodon austriacus
- Bluecheek butterflyfish Chaetodon semilarvatus
- Bluelashed butterflyfish Chaetodon bennetti
Sources: Wikipedia taxobox: Threadfin butterflyfish (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 218730 (CC BY 4.0)
Conservation status
Least Concern (LC)
- LC▲ this species
- NT
- VU
- EN
- CR
- EW
- EX
Source: IUCN Red List assessment · GBIF copy of the Red List category
How big is it?
Largest length in the source, 0.23 m, next to a 1.8 m person.
Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Threadfin butterflyfish
Where the threadfin butterflyfish has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (15,861 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 40 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
This species is found in the Indo-Pacific region from the Red Sea and eastern Africa to the Hawaiian, Marquesas and Ducie islands.[4] It occurs at depths of 1 to 35 m.[4] The fish has a prominent black vertical band through the eye and a trailing filament on the dorsal fin.[3] The specific name auriga means "charioteer" in Latin, referring to the filament that resembles a coachman’s whip.[3]
Chaetodon auriga setifer is the spotted population outside the Red Sea.[1] A 2015 report documented one individual off the coast of Italy, which was probably released from an aquarium.[4] Some authorities split the species into two subspecies: Chaetodon auriga auriga, found in the Red Sea, which does not have the dorsal eyespot.[1] This species is placed within the large subgenus Rabdophorus, a group that some researchers think could be elevated to a full genus.[5]
What the specialist sources record
The Fishes of Australia account describes the species as a white butterflyfish with chevron markings and bright yellow fins.[3] The etymology from Fishes of Australia explains the specific name auriga refers to a coachman’s whip.[3] The GBIF database holds 17,060 occurrence records for this taxon as of October 2026.[6] The WoRMS database lists the species as accepted in the order Acanthuriformes, class Teleostei.[2]
Bray's account also mentions the trailing filament on the dorsal fin and the black vertical band that passes through the eye.[3]
References
- Wikipedia, "Threadfin butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Dianne J. Bray, "Chaetodon auriga", Fishes of Australia; (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- World Register of Marine Species, Chaetodon auriga (AphiaID 218730). CC BY 4.0. marinespecies.org
- Dianne J. Bray, "Chaetodon auriga", Fishes of Australia. facts only, no text reused. fishesofaustralia.net.au
- Wikipedia, "Threadfin butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ; Atlas of Exotic Fishes in the Mediterranean Sea (Chaetodon auriga). 2nd Edition. 2021. 366p. CIESM Publishers, Paris, Monaco.https://ciesm.org/atlas/fishes_2nd_ (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Threadfin butterflyfish" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Jennifer L. Fessler, "Molecular phylogenetics of the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae): taxonomy and biogeography of a global coral reef fish family", Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 2007, p. 50–68; Kui-Ching Hsu, "Molecular phylogeny of Chaetodon (Teleostei: Chaetodontidae) in the Indo-West Pacific: evolution in geminate species pairs and species groups", Raffles Bulletin of Zoology, 2007, p. 77–86 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- GBIF Backbone Taxonomy and occurrence index, Chaetodon auriga (taxon key 2385390). 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 Threadfin 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.
More in Butterflyfish
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.
- Wikipedia: Threadfin butterflyfish (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Classification: the source article's taxobox; order, family and genus checked against WoRMS, the World Register of Marine Species (CC BY 4.0).
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List assessment.
- Occurrence records: GBIF (CC0 / CC BY). Basemap: Natural Earth (public domain).
- Word definitions: the Codexery glossary, each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
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