Longnose Butterflyfish

ID points

• Entirely yellow, with a very long black tubular snout
• Upper half of the head black, lower half silvery white, split by a straight line
• A black eyespot at the rear of the anal fin

Basics

Family

Chaetodontidae

Length

18–22 cm

Depth

2-114 m

Regions

Indo-Pacific reefs

Distribution

Coral reefs from the Indian Ocean to the Pacific

Habitat

Shallow coral reefs

Diet

Small crustaceans, polychaete worms

Easily confused with

Saddleback ButterflyfishA large black saddle patch edged in white on the rear of the backBannerfishThe fourth dorsal spine drawn out into a very long white bannerEightband ButterflyfishEight thin, evenly spaced black vertical bands on a pale yellow ground

Fun fact

The Longnose Butterflyfish has the most slender snout of any butterflyfish, more than a third of its total body length. That precise scalpel is used to pluck coral polyp tentacles and small invertebrates from deep inside crevices. It lives in pairs, keeping the same partner for life as the two patrol and feed across the reef together.

More in this family

• Butterflyfish
• Copperband Butterflyfish
• Foureye Butterflyfish
• Lemon Butterflyfish
• Raccoon Butterflyfish
• Teardrop Butterflyfish