Raccoon butterflyfish
Chaetodon lunula
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Raccoon butterflyfish
- Scientific
- Chaetodon lunula
- Dhivehi
- ހަނދުފަޅި ބިބީHandhufalhi bibee
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 20 cm (total length)
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 0 to 170 m
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2009
Description
A yellow to orange-yellow butterflyfish with a black mask across the eyes edged by a white band, a black bar behind the head, and diagonal reddish lines on the body. It is partly nocturnal, often resting in groups by day and feeding at night on nudibranchs, tubeworm tentacles and other invertebrates. It lives on shallow reef flats and slopes.
In the Maldives
Dhivehi Wikipedia (MRS-derived) gives handhufalhi bibee.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Chaetodon-lunula.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=5565&GenusName=Chaetodon&SpeciesName=
- dv.wikipedia.org /wiki/ހަނދުފަޅި_ބިބީ
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Raccoon_butterflyfish_(Chaetodon_lunula)_(28655664667).jpg
Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Handhufalhi bibee' (Latin script). Thaana from the Dhivehi Wikipedia article 'ހަނދުފަޅި ބިބީ' (derived from the MRS 1997 Dhivehi edition); it matches the Latin form. FishBase also lists 'Handupholimas' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used.