Speckled butterflyfish
A pale yellow butterflyfish with small dark spots and a black eye bar.
Last updated
Paipateroma · via Wikipedia: Speckled butterflyfish · CC BY-SA 3.0
The speckled butterflyfish (Chaetodon citrinellus), also known as the citron butterflyfish, is a species of butterflyfish in the family Chaetodontidae. It is notable for its distinct phylogenetic position: it is most closely related to the fourspot butterflyfish (C. quadrimaculatus), and together they are basal in the subgenus Exornator, possibly intermediate between the core group of Exornator and the Rhombochaetodon (or Roaops) lineage.
Scientific classification
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumChordata
- ClassActinopterygii
- DivisionTeleostei
- OrderAcanthuriformes
- FamilyChaetodontidae
- GenusChaetodon
- GenusChaetodon
- SpeciesChaetodon citrinellus
Named by G. Cuvier, 1831
Close relatives
Other species of Chaetodon with a Codexery entry.
- Sunburst butterflyfish Chaetodon kleinii
- Fourspot butterflyfish (Chaetodon quadrimaculatus) Chaetodon quadrimaculatus
- 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: Speckled butterflyfish (CC BY-SA 4.0) · order, family and genus agree with WoRMS AphiaID 218744 (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, 0.13 m, next to a 1.8 m person.
Diagram: drawn by Codexery, schematic shapes to scale (not a likeness). Length: Wikipedia: Speckled butterflyfish
Where the speckled butterflyfish has been recorded
Each dot is a place where the species has been observed and reported (10,291 records, half-degree grid) — not a modelled range. 25 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)
Background
The speckled butterflyfish is described as pale yellow with numerous small dark spots, a black bar extending above and below the eye, and a black margin to the anal fin. The largest recorded specimen was 13 centimeters (5.1 in) long. It is common in shallow exposed reef flats, lagoons, and seaward reefs, generally in relatively open areas with scattered corals, and may occasionally be found as deep as 36 meters (118 ft).
Adults usually swim in pairs, which form during breeding, while juveniles are more often seen in small aggregations and commonly mix with other similar-sized juveniles, especially of the sunburst butterflyfish (C. kleinii). The species is oviparous.
Phylogenetically, C. citrinellus is a distinct species most closely related to the fourspot butterflyfish (C. quadrimaculatus). Together they are basal in the subgenus Exornator, and might be intermediate between the core group of this subgenus and the species of the Rhombochaetodon (or Roaops) lineage. If that is correct, the latter would require to be merged into Exornator. If the genus Chaetodon is split up, Exornator might become a subgenus of Lepidochaetodon.
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: Speckled 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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