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Philippine Chevron Butterflyfish

Family: Chaetodontidae

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Chaetodon xanthurus Photo © Animal-World: Courtesy Greg Rothschild

   Can you believe this is the Phillipine Chevron Butterflyfish? Looks can be deceiving!

   The Phillipine Chevron Butterflyfish and three very similar "look alikes", the C. mertensii, C. madagascariensis, and C. paucifasciatus, are each identified by where they come from rather than looks!

For more Information on keeping this fish see:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Marine Aquarium

Maintenance difficulty:
   The Phillipine Chevron Butterflyfish is generally medium hard to keep.

Maintenance:
    It is important that you feed Butterfly fish a good variety of live, frozen, and prepared formula foods with emphasis on vegetables and spirulina. These foods can include live brine, flakes, and frozen foods of all kinds including Formula I, Formula II, Angel Formula and spirulina. Several sponge based frozen foods are now available and can also be fed to butterflyfish. Best to feed small amounts several times a day.

Diseases that Marine Butterflyfish are susceptible to:
Marine Ich(white spot disease), Marine Velvet, Uronema marinum, and Lymphocystis

Foods:
   This butterflyfish is an omnivore, eating coral polyps, small animals (worms), and worms.

Social Behaviors:
   Found alone or in pairs.

Sex: Sexual differences:
   Unknown.

Light: Recommended light levels:
   No special requirements.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   Not accomplished in captivity. See Breeding Marine Fish page for a description of how they reproduce in the wild.

Temperature:
   No special requirements.

Length/Diameter of fish:
   Phillipine Chevron Butterflyfish adults can grow to 14 cm ( 5.6 inches).

Minimum Tank Length/Size:
   A minimum 50 gallon aquarium is recommended.

Water Movement: Weak, Moderate, Strong
   No special requirements.

Water Region: Top, Middle, Bottom
   No special requirements.

Availability:
   This fish is generally available from time to time.

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Latest Comments
I have kept one of these for a little over 6 months now. They are very calm beautiful fish. Mine lives with a blue tang, blonde naso tang, orangefin tang, a sleeper goby, and a threadfin butterfly. This fish has never messed with any other fish. The blue tang used to try and pick on it because it was the smallest fish in the tank, but the chevron butterfly was always to fast for him. They get along fine now. Great fish! Matt 2008-02-29
Some of the coolest comments:
This fish was definately a little more challenging to keep. Though we got it to eat live daphnia(spelling?), and then some scraps of cut up shrimp. It didn't eat at first, and it didn't eat at every feeding, but it figured it out. But it is so beautiful in our tank! The brilliant white seemed to sparkle in the light and this is one of my favorite all-time fish, bear in mind I haven't kept angelfish yet. I found when i was persistant and kept at it, we finally got it acclimated and it started eating progressively. One tip, I think it helps with new fish, especially if they are fresh from the ocean that it has some hardy tank buddies to "show it" the ropes and what is food in it's new tank setting. Like learning from observation. Thomas 2009-07-06

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Author: David Brough. CFS.