- Classification
- ACTINOPTERYGII
- PERCIFORMES
- CHAETODONTIDAE
- Chaetodon
- guttatissimus
Peppered Butterflyfish, Chaetodon guttatissimus Bennett 1833
Other Names: Gorgeous Gussy, Spotted Butterflyfish
A Peppered Butterflyfish, Chaetodon guttatissimus, in the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, February 2014. Source: cocos_karen / iNaturalist.org. License: CC By Attribution-NonCommercial
Summary:
A silvery white butterflyfish with irregular vertical rows of dusky spots or speckles on the side (rows horizontal on lower side), a narrow dark bar through the eye, an orange bar at the rear of the dorsal fin and upper caudal peduncle, a black submarginal band on the tail, and a yellow margin on the dorsal fin.
Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. & Thompson, A.S. 2020, Chaetodon guttatissimus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 09 Oct 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/4832
Peppered Butterflyfish, Chaetodon guttatissimus Bennett 1833
More Info
Distribution |
Australian territories of Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the Indian Ocean. Elsewhere, the species is widespread in the Indian Ocean: East Africa and South Africa, east to Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) and the Andaman Sea coast of Thailand. Individuals or pairs inhabit coral rich areas in lagoons and seaward reef slopes. |
Features |
Dorsal fin XII-XIII,22-24; Anal fin III, 16-18; Pectoral fin 13-14; Lateral line scales 34-43. Body depth 1.4-1.8 in SL; snout length 2.8-4.0 in HL. |
Feeding |
Feeds in live coral - most likely an obligate corallivore. |
Fisheries |
Although occasionally sold in the aquarium industry, the species is difficult to maintain in captivity as it feeds on live coral. |
Remarks |
At the Australian Territory of Christmas Island, the Peppered Butterflyfish hybridises with the Spotbanded Butterflyfish, Chaetodon punctatofasciatus. |
Etymology |
The specific name guttatissimus is from the Latin guttatus (= spotted, speckled) and -issimus (= very, highly) in reference to the close-set grey spots or speckles on sides. |
Species Citation |
Chaetodon guttatissimus Bennett, 1833, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond. 1832(2): 183. Type locality: Sri Lanka (as Ceylon). |
Author |
Bray, D.J. & Thompson, A.S. 2020 |
Resources |
Peppered Butterflyfish, Chaetodon guttatissimus Bennett 1833
References
Allen, G.R. 1980. Butterfly and Angelfishes of the World. New York : John Wiley & Sons Vol. 2 pp. 149-352 figs 214-510.
Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls.
Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.
Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21.
Allen, G.R. & Steene, R.C. 1988. Fishes of Christmas Island Indian Ocean. Christmas Island Natural History Association, Christmas Island, Indian Ocean, 6798, Australia. 197 pp.
Allen, G.R., Steene, R. & Allen, M. 1998. A Guide to Angelfishes & Butterflyfishes. Cairns : Odyssey Publishing/Tropical Reef Research 250 pp. figs.
Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp.
Bennett, E.T. 1833. Characters of new species of fishes from Ceylon. Proceedings of the General Meetings for Scientific Business of the Zoological Society of London 1832(2): 182-184. See ref at BHL
Burgess, W.E. 1978. Butterflyfishes of the World. New Jersey : T.F.H. Publications Inc. 832 pp. figs.
Fessler, J.L. & Westneat, M.W. 2007. Molecular phylogenetics of the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae): Taxonomy and biogeography of a global coral reef fish family. Molecular Phylogenetics & Evolution 45(1): 50–68. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-0031.2003.tb00374.x
Hobbs J-P.A., Frisch, A.J., Allen, G.R. & van Herwerden, L. 2008. Marine hybrid hotspot at Indo-Pacific biogeographic border. Biology Letters 5: 258–261 http://doi.org/10.1098/rsbl.2008.0561
Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S.J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Checklist and new records of Christmas Island fishes: the influence of isolation, biogeography and habitat availability on species abundance and community composition. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 184–202 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/
Hobbs, J-P.A., Newman, S .J., Mitsopoulos, G.E.A., Travers, M.J., Skepper, C.L., Gilligan, J.J., Allen, G.R., Choat, H.J. & Ayling, A.M. 2014. Fishes of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands: new records, community composition and biogeographic significance. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 30: 203–219 https://lkcnhm.nus.edu.sg/rbz/supplement-no-30/
Hsu, K-C., Chen, J-P. & Shao, K-T. 2007. Molecular phylogeny of Chaetodon (Teleostei: Chaetodontidae) in the Indo-West Pacific: evolution in geminate species pairs and species groups. Raffles Bulletin of Zoology Supplement 14: 77-86. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2007.05.018
Kuiter, R.H. 2002. Butterflyfishes, Bannerfishes and their Relatives. Chorleywood, U.K. : TMC Publishing 208 pp.
Montanari, S.R., Hobbs, J.‐P.A., Pratchett, M.S., Bay, L.K. & van Herwerden, L. 2014. Does genetic distance between parental species influence outcomes of hybridization among coral reef butterflyfishes? Molecular Ecology 23: 2757-2770. https://doi.org/10.1111/mec.12762
Montanari, S.R., Hobbs, J-P.A., Pratchett, M.S., Bay, L.K. & van Herwerden, L. 2017. Naturally occurring hybrids of coral reef butterflyfishes have similar fitness compared to parental species. PLoS ONE 12(3): e0173212. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0173212
Pyle, R. 2001. Chaetodontidae, Pomacanthidae. pp. 3224-3286 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 5 2791-3379 pp.
Pyle, R., Myers, R., Craig, M.T. & Pratchett, M. 2010. Chaetodon guttatissimus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2010: e.T165619A6069598. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2010-4.RLTS.T165619A6069598.en. Downloaded on 25 October 2019.
Smith, Wm. L., Webb, J.F. & Blum, S.D. 2003. The evolution of the laterophysic connection with a revised phylogeny and taxonomy of butterflyfishes (Teleostei: Chaetodontidae). Cladistics 19(4): 287-306 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-0031.2003.tb00374.x