Redtail butterflyfish
Chaetodon collare
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Redtail butterflyfish
- Scientific
- Chaetodon collare
- Dhivehi
- ކަލަރު ބިބީKalaru bibee
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 18 cm (total length)
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 1 to 20 m
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2009
Description
A dark brown butterflyfish with a pale lattice of scales, a black head crossed by two white bars, and a bright red tail. It lives in pairs or small groups along reef edges and upper slopes and feeds on coral polyps. It is a striking and frequently photographed species.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi Wikipedia (MRS-derived) gives kalaru bibee. Common on Maldivian reef edges, often in small groups.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Chaetodon-collare.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=7803&GenusName=Chaetodon&SpeciesName=
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ކަލަރު_ބިބީ
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Chaetodon_collare_340437732.jpg
Dhivehi name source: FishBase (country: Maldives) gives only the general group name 'Dhon bibi'. Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ކަލަރު ބިބީ' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition). No published Latin-script form found; 'Kalaru bibee' is Pax's transliteration of the Thaana (Malé Latin conventions). FLAG: Latin form is a transliteration, not a published spelling.