Oriental butterflyfish (Chaetodon auripes)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Acanthuriformes · Family: Chaetodontidae · Genus: Chaetodon.

Accepted name: Chaetodon auripes · Authority: Jordan & Snyder, 1901 · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 273327.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Chaetodon aureus Temminck & Schlegel, 1844; Chaetodon fallax Ahl, 1923.

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=273327 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Chaetodon auripes. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 20 cm · Depth range: 1–30 m · Habitat zone: reef-associated · Body shape: short and / or deep · Vulnerability index: 10 of 100 · Fishery importance: commercial · Aquarium trade: commercial.

FishBase notes: Inhabit rocky reefs with algae and coral (Ref. 9710). Solitary or in groups (Ref. 9710). Feed on benthic invertebrates (Ref. 9710). Oviparous (Ref. 205). Form pairs during breeding (Ref. 205).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 6648) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Chaetodon-auripes.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

717 georeferenced occurrence records for Chaetodon auripes are published through GBIF from 12 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 84 distinct locations from a sample of 717 records, omitting 29 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: Chinese Taipei (322); Japan (317); China (26); Viet Nam (22); Hong Kong (16); Philippines (7); Malaysia (2); Korea, Republic of (1); Marshall Islands (1); Singapore (1); Thailand (1); United States of America (1).

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2385577) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2385577&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=273327 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-25.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Chaetodon auripes Jordan & Snyder, 1901 as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 165693) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/165693/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2385577) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2385577/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-25.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

Chaetodon auripes was first formally described in 1901 by the American ichthyologists David Starr Jordan and John Otterbein Snyder with the type locality given as Nagasaki. Within its genus, this species belongs to the large subgenus Rabdophorus (which might warrant recognition as a full genus, separate from Chaetodon).

Chaetodon auripes has a vividly yellow body, and the dorsal, anal and caudal fins are also yellow. There is a wide vertical black band running through the eyes and a slightly thinner white band immediately behind that. The juveniles have a black ocellus on the upper part of soft-rayed part of the dorsal fin, but this fades as the fish matures. The dorsal fin has 12 spines and 23-24 soft rays while the anal fin has 3 spines and 18-19 soft rays, and the total length that this species can reach is 20 cm.

Chaetodon auripes is found in the western Pacific Ocean, from Japan (including the Ryukyu Islands, the Izu Islands and the Ogasawara Islands) and the southwest of South Korea to the southern coasts of China and Vietnam.

Chaetodon auripes typically occurs at depths of 1 to 30 m, and is known to occur as deep as 150 m. Adults are usually found on rocky reefs where coral and algae are present, while juveniles are usually found in tidal pools and sheltered rocky areas in shallow water.

They gather in aggregations, although they are also often encountered as solitary individuals. This species lives in cooler waters than other butterflyfish, being able to tolerate temperatures down to 10 °C off Japan. It feeds on filamentous algae as well as worms, crustaceans, soft corals, stony corals, sea anemones, and other benthic invertebrates.

This species can be found in the aquarium trade, but is rare.

Source: Wikipedia: Chaetodon auripes — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chaetodon_auripes (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-25.