No photo available
Chevron butterflyfish
Chaetodon trifascialis
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Chevron butterflyfish
- Scientific
- Chaetodon trifascialis
- Dhivehi
- Dhon bibi
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 18 cm (total length)
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats, recorded from 0 to 30 m
- IUCN status
- NT · Near ThreatenedNear Threatened (NT), assessed 2009
Description
A small, elongate butterflyfish, white with a fine chevron pattern, a black eye bar and a black tail edged in yellow. It is fiercely territorial around table and staghorn Acropora corals, whose polyps and mucus are its main food. Because it depends so closely on these corals, it is a useful indicator of reef health.
In the Maldives
FishBase (Maldives) gives the general name dhon bibi.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Chaetodon-trifascialis.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=5578&GenusName=Chaetodon&SpeciesName=
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Pez_mariposa_Chevrón_(Chaetodon_trifascialis),_parque_nacio
Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Dhon bibi' (Latin script). FishBase also lists 'Handupholimas' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used. FLAG: single source.