Black & White Butterflyfish

Heniochus acuminatus/diphreutes

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Other Names: Pennant coralfish, longfin bannerfish, reef bannerfish or coachman (Heniochus acuminatus) and the Schooling bannerfish, false moorish idol (Heniochus diphreutes).

Family: Chaetodontidae (butterflyfishes)

Size: 15-25 cm

Distribution: Native to the Indo-Pacific area

Status: Least concern

Habitat: The pennant coralfish likes relatively deep waters from protected lagoon, channels or outer reef slopes from 15 to 75 meters deep. The schooling bannerfish prefers external reef slopes and channels. It has a large depth range and is usually observed at 5–30 m depth, but may reach 210 meters deep in some localities.

References: Wikipedia

About the Black & White Butterflyfish

As is indicated by its common name, the schooling bannerfish lives in large groups. It feeds on zooplankton in the open water, and juveniles may act as cleaner fish. I think the one pictured here is Heniochus acuminatus, although it looks extremely similar to Heniochus diphreutes.

Photo: Sydney Aquarium. High Resolution 4256 x 2832.

See Also

Australian Mammals
Australian Birds
Australian Reptiles
Australian Frogs
Australian Spiders and Their Faces
Australian Wild Plant Foods

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