Chaetodon flavirostris

Gunther, 1874

Dusky Butterflyfish, Black Butterflyfish

Range: South Central Pacific Ocean: Samoa, Crook, Fiji, Rapa, and Pitcairn Islands, Australia, Great Barrier Reef, Lord Howe island, and New Caledonia.

Size: 8 inches (20 cm)

Natural Environment: Inhabits coastal lagoon reefs, reef flats, and fore-reef slopes at depths between 6 to 65 feet (2 – 20 m) and mainly feeds on zooplankton and sessile invertebrates.

General Husbandry: Has a darkish blue-grey body, white mouth, thin yellow band on the snout, yellow dorsal, anal and tail, and a dark bump on the forehead. Rarely seen in the trade since its known to be a poor shipper and/or often having a poor survial rate due to it usually refusing to eat common aquarium foods.

Should be housed in larger peaceful fish-only aquariums, especially those with lots of open swimming space, and live rock hiding places. A meaty diet of live fortified brine shrimp, black worms (Lumbriculus variegatus), and/or various frozen meaty foods such as mysis, should be offered several times daily.

Nevertheless, this species is often found in the wild in areas having no coral growth, yet mostly covered with algae growths. This suggests it may also feed on algae, and if so, flake foods, especially those containing Spirulina and/or Nori should also be occasionally offered. Once feeding well, they are reported to be very hardy.

Should there be a problem getting this species to feed, small human consumption clams/black mussels purchased in local grocery stores and placed on the half-shell in the aquarium may help entice it to begin feeding. Over time, frozen foods like mysis and brine shrimp may be more readily accepted.

Taxonomy:

Order: Perciformes

Suborder: Percoidei

Family: Chaetodontidae

Genus: Chaetodon

FYI: Juveniles acclimate more easily to aquarium life than do adults.

Preferably maintained without others in the same genus.

Pressing some soft foods into openings/crevices on a piece of old dead coral skeleton can sometimes encourage finicky eaters to begin feeding.

Experience Level: Intermediate

Temperament: Peaceful

Diet: Carnivore

Coral Safe: No

Invertebrate Safe: No

Acclimation Time: 30 minutes+

Aquarium Environment: Fish-only aquarium

Tankmates: Peaceful or non-aggressive

Minimum Tank Size: 100 gallons

Temperature Range: 72 - 82°F (22 – 28°C)

Specific Gravity: 1.020 -1.026

pH: 8.0 - 8.5