Chaetodon guttatissimus

Gorgeous gussy | Peppered Butterflyfish | Spotted Butterflyfish
Chaetodon guttatissimus
Chaetodon guttatissimus, Seychelles, Photo: Rick Stuart-Smith
Chaetodon guttatissimus
Chaetodon guttatissimus, adult, Photo: Ian Shaw
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Chaetodon guttatissimus
Chaetodon guttatissimus

Distribution

Tropical Indo-Pacific


Description

Cream to pale yellow body with dark spots forming vague vertical lines, white tail base with black bar, unlike C. citrinellus (Citron Butterflyfish). Distinguished from C. pelewensis by location (latter a Pacific Ocean species), and from C. punctatofasciatus by lacking yellow tail base and having black rather than yellow stripe through eye. An Indian Ocean species; in Australia only found at Christmas Island.


Information

Max Size: 12 cm

Sea Temperature Range: 25.4-33°C

Depth: 3-30m

Habitat Generalization Index: 4.76

Also referred to as the SGI (Species Generalisation Index), this describes the habitat niche breadth of the species. Species with values less than 15 are found in a relatively narrow range of reef habitat types (specialists), while those over 25 may be found on most hard substrates within their range (generalists). Learn more here.


Conservation and Rarity

IUCN Status: Least Concern

Occurrence: Widespread (83.3% of sites)

Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed

Abundance: Few (3 per transect)

Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.


Edit by: RD Stuart-Smith, GJ Edgar, AJ Green, IV Shaw. 2015. Tropical Marine Fishes of Australia. Reed New Holland