The Great Fiji Butterflyfish Count 2008
34
Photos by Stuart Gow, Resort Support, except where stated Paintings from “Reef Fish of the World” Ewald Lieske & Robert Myers, ISBN 962-593- 140-6 Adapted by Helen Sykes, Butterflyfish of Fiji Biology and Identification Flash Cards
-
Upload
stuart-gow -
Category
Sports
-
view
1.481 -
download
1
description
In the International Year of the Coral Reef (2008), you have the opportunity to help celebrate and record Fiji’s amazing coral reef biodiversity, show you care about our world’s delicate coral reef systems, and have fun, by taking part in a week-long hunt for the Great Fiji Butterflyfish! Easy to do, this is suitable for visitors and locals alike, whether you are a snorkeler, SCUBA diver or Glass-bottom boat passenger. We hope that tourists, school children, scientists and all people with an interest in the marine environment will take to the reefs with us to search for Butterflyfish. Double Saddled Butterflyfish, FijiThe Great Fiji Butterflyfish Count will be held around Fiji from the 2nd to the 8th November 2008. You can do a single count during that week, or take place as many times as you like during that week, so that you cover different reefs. All data will be gratefully accepted! So, grab your Great Fiji Butterflyfish Count slate from participating resorts and dive operators, put on your snorkel and mask and dive into the beautiful blue waters of Fiji, to be a part of history!
Transcript of The Great Fiji Butterflyfish Count 2008
Photos by Stuart Gow, Resort Support, except where stated
Paintings from “Reef Fish of the World” Ewald Lieske & Robert Myers, ISBN 962-593-140-6
Adapted by Helen Sykes, www.marineecologyfiji.com
Butterflyfish of FijiBiology and
Identification Flash Cards
Butterflyfish Biology Butterflyfish are in the family
Chaetodontidae. They have deep, compressed bodies
(oval-shaped when side on, thin when head on), and small, pointed mouths, with brush-like teeth.
Most are active during the day, and have a limited home-range of reef. Many will actively defend their territory and drive away other coral feeding fishes such as other butterflyfish, damselfish and wrasse.
At night Butterflyfish hide in the reef crevices and spend the night motionless.
Butterflyfish Species There are 116 species
across the globe, including their close cousins the Bannerfish.
90% of butterflyfish species are found in the Indo-Pacific, and in Fiji at least 27 species of Butterflyfish and 6 Bannerfish can be found.
Butterflyfish FeedingButterflyfish depend on
living coral for shelter and food.
Many species feed directly on living coral polyps, and others on the tiny invertebrates around the corals, or on the tube feet or tentacles of larger invertebrates such as Sea Cucumbers, Starfish, Sea Anemones or Jellyfish.
Some Butterflyfish only eat the tentacles of the actual coral animals, and so are totally dependant on good coral health.
Butterflyfish Behaviour
Butterflyfish are often seen as the romantics of the reef, as many species are normally found in pairs, and the pairing will last for life.
A few species are solitary and normally found alone, while a very few species form large schools.
In Fiji the only species that regularly schools is the Pyramid Butterflyfish.
Butterflyfish ID
There are 27 Species of butterflyfish in Fiji.They ALL have these features in common:1. Small – less than 5-6 inches (18 -20cm) nose-to-tail2. Oval shaped body (round at side, skinny head on)3. Flat tail – NONE have forked tails4. Dark band or other mark through the eye5. Small mouth with pursed lips (like a kiss)6. Swim near coral, usually using side (pectoral) fins7. Often seen in pairs, rarely in schools8. Most are yellow, white and black in colour
Butterflyfish identification Flash cards
The next slides show each of Fiji’s 27 Butterflyfish species.
Click once to see a photo and drawing of the fish.
Try and name the fish using your identification guide.
Click a second time to get the name and check your identification skills.
1. Vagabond butterflyChaetodon vagabundus Common
White body Yellow tail and fins
Hatched lines on body
Three thickblack bars through eye, on tail, and base of tail
2. Threadfin butterfly Chaetodon auriga Limited range
White body
Yellowtail and back fin
Black spot and long end on back fin.
Thick black bar through eye.
3. Chevroned butterfly Chaetodon trifascialis Limited range
White body
Orange fins
Black tail
Long body with V shaped lines
Thick black bar through eye
4. Lined butterfly Chaetodon lineolatus Limited range
Photo by Cook, D.C. Fishbase
White body
Yellow tail and fins
Vertical body lines
Thick black bar along back and base of tail
Thick black bar through eye
5. Spot-nape butterfly Chaetodon oxycephalus Unusual
Photo by Randall, J.E. Fishbase
White body
Yellow tail and fins
Vertical body lines
Thick black bar along back and base of tail
Black bar through eye broken into a bar and a forehead spot
6. Blackbacked butterfly
Chaetodon melannotus Common
White body
Yellow face, tail and fins
Diagonal body lines
Black shading along back
Black bar through eye
7. Double-saddled butterfly Chaetodon ulietensis Common
White body
Yellow tail and fins
Vertical body lines
Black bar through eye
Two wide black bands on body
Black spot at base of tail
8. Teardrop butterfly
Chaetodon unimaculatus Limited range
White body
Yellow tail and fins
Thick black bar through eye and thinner one on tail
Upside down black teardrop spot on side
9. Dot & dash butterfly
Chaetodon pelewensis Common
Cream body
Brown diagonal lines and rows of spots on body
Orange tail
10. Triangle butterfly
Chaetodon baronessa Common
Greyish-yellow triangular body
Yellow and brown bars through eye
11. Merten's butterfly
Chaetodon mertensii Common
White body
Orange tail and back of body
V shaped black lines on body
Thin black bar through eye
12. Ornate butterfly
Chaetodon ornatissimus Limited range
White oval shaped body
Thick yellow lines on body
Black bars through eye
13. Bennett’s butterfly
Chaetodon bennetti Limited range
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Black spot with blue edge on body
Two curved blue lines on body
Light black bar though eye
14. Bluespot butterfly
Chaetodon plebeius Limited range
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Long blue blotch on body
Black spot at base of tail
Light black bar though eye
15. Redfin butterfly
Chaetodon lunulatus Common
Pale yellow/orange oval body
Bluish diagonal lines on body
Red bottom fin
Black bar through eye
16. Latticed butterfly
Chaetodon rafflessi Common
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Criss-cross lines on body
Thick black bar through eye and on tail
Small blue mark on forehead
17. Dotted butterfly
Chaetodon semeion Unusual
Photos by Tanaka, H. and Randall, J.E. Fishbase
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Horizontal lines of dots on body
Thick black bar through eye and on fins
Small blue mark on forehead
Sometimes shows large fuzzy black blotch on body
18. Speckled butterfly
Chaetodon citrinellus Common
Pale cream body
Grey speckles on body
Black bar through eye
19. Forceps butterfly
Forcipiger flavissimus Common
Yellow body
Black forehead
White face
Black spot below tail
Nose length tip-to-eye is same as face length eye-to-side-fin
20. Long-nose butterfly
Forcipiger longirostris Limited range
Photo by Randall, J.E. Fishbase
Yellow body
Black forehead
White face
Black spot below tail
Nose length tip-to-eye is longer than face length eye-to-side-fin
21. Saddled butterfly
Chaetodon ephippium Limited range
Pale grey/green body
Large black white-edged spot on back quarter
Orange chin
22. Raccoon butterfly
Chaetodon lunula Limited range
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Black and white mask
Curved black bar behind face
Black spot at base of tail
23. Fourspot butterfly
Chaetodon quadrimaculatus Unusual
Photo by Randall, J.E. Fishbase
All-yellow body, tail and fins
Black shading on back with two white spots on each side of back
Wide white bar near eye, and pale black bar through eye
24. Klein's butterfly
Chaetodon kleinii Common
Orange body tail and fins
Hazy light band on body
White face with black bar through eye
25. Reticulated butterfly
Chaetodon reticulatus Limited range
Black body and bottom fin
Pale grey top fin and band behind head
Creamy yellow spots on body
Black bar through eye
Yellow side fins
26. Black butterfly
Chaetodon flavirostris Unusual
Photo by Randall, J.E. Fishbase
Black body
Gold tail and fins
Gold wedge on back
Grey face with orange nose
27. Pyramid butterfly
Hemitaurichthys polylepsis Limited range
White body and tail
Orange markings forming triangle on body
Dark brown face
Found in schools, usually in deep water
