CHAETODONTIDAE


Chaetodon andamanensis
(photo by Ukkrit Satapoomin)


Chaetodon andamanensis
Kuiter and Debelius, 1999
Andaman Butterflyfish

D XIV-XVI, 16-18; A IV, 15-16; P1 16-17; LLp 36-38.

Body ovate, moderately deep and strongly compressed; head profile steep; snout short. Lateral line incomplete, ending in vicinity of last rays of dorsal fin. Soft-rayed sections of dorsal and anal fins strongly rounded posteriorly; caudal fin truncate with upper median rays longest. Color: overall bright yellow, with about 20 light brown-gray horizontal lines along scale rows on sides; a blue-edged black bar through eye; an eye-sized rounded, slightly elongate, black spot covering upper half of caudal peduncle; caudal fin with clear posterior margin. Size: maximum length about 13 cm. Distribution: Eastern Indian Ocean, from Andaman Sea and northern Sumatra westward to the Maldives. Remarks: inhabits coral reefs, often in depths less than 10 m. Adults usually observed swimming in pairs, occasionally in small groups; small juveniles swim among branches of Acropora corals. Feeds mainly on coral polyps. Chaetodon plebeius is its Pacific sibling.