Pearlscale Butterflyfish Chaetodon xanthurus

Pearlscale Butterflyfish
Pearlscale Butterflyfish
Pearlscale Butterflyfish
The Pearlscale Butterflyfish is also called the Yellow-tailed, the Crosshatch and the Philippines Chevron. It is native to reefs from Indonesia and the Philippines to Japan.
Pearlscale Butterflyfish
Pearlscale Butterflyfish
Pearlscale Butterflyfish
The fish can grow to 15cm long. It is part of the "Crown" complex (referring to the white bordered black spot on the upper forehead) which includes the similar but red-patterned Crown (or Eritrean) Butterflyfish of the Red Sea.
Pearlscale Butterflyfish Often lives singly or in pairs among acropora coral.
Pearlscale Butterflyfish The long snout allows it to seek out algae and small invertebrates among corals.
Pearlscale Butterflyfish Not a good photo but it does show the spines raised (and with white-tipped reef shark).