Melon butterflyfish
Chaetodon trifasciatus
Valid name (FishBase; confirmed in Eschmeyer's Catalog of Fishes and WoRMS, October 2026).
- English
- Melon butterflyfish
- Scientific
- Chaetodon trifasciatus
- Dhivehi
- Bibee
- Group
- Reef fish
- Maximum size
- Up to about 15 cm (total length); commonly 12 cm
- Depth and habitat
- Coral reefs and reef-associated habitats
- IUCN status
- LC · Least ConcernLeast Concern (LC), assessed 2009
Description
A pale yellow butterflyfish with many thin purplish lines along the body, three black bars on the head (one through the eye), and an orange tail band. It lives in pairs in coral-rich lagoons and sheltered reefs and feeds only on coral polyps. It is the Indian Ocean form; the Pacific equivalent is C. lunulatus.
In the Maldives
FishBase (Maldives) gives the general name bibee. A very common butterflyfish on Maldivian reefs, usually in pairs.
Sources
- fishbase.se /summary/Chaetodon-trifasciatus.html
- fishbase.se /comnames/CommonNamesList.php?ID=5579&GenusName=Chaetodon&SpeciesName=
- commons.wikimedia.org /wiki/File:Pez_mariposa_(Chaetodon_trifasciatus),_Mahé,_Seychelles,_20
Dhivehi name source: FishBase common names (country: Maldives) give 'Bibee' (Latin script). FishBase also lists 'Handupholimas' under India (Minicoy/Lakshadweep Mahl dialect); not used. FLAG: single source. FLAG: generic name for the group, not species-specific.