Common Name: Arabian Butterflyfish
Species Name: Chaetodon melapterus Guichenot, 1863
Range: Indian Ocean: Persian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, and along the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula
Size: up to 5 inches (12.5 cm)
Natural Environment: Inhabit shallow algal reefs and fore-reef slopes at depths between 3 - 100 feet (1 - 30 m)
General Husbandry: Has a temperature range of 74 - 82°F (23 - 28°C) and natural diet consists "exclusively" of live corals. This is an extremely difficult species to maintain and should be left in the wild!
Aquarium Suitability: * * *
Anemonefishes - Angelfishes - Anthias - Assessors - Bannerfish - Basslets (Dottybacks and Grammas) - Batfishes - Blennies - Boxfishes - Brotulas - Butterflyfishes - Cardinalfishes - Catfishes - Cuttlefish - Damselfishes - Dartfishes - Dragonets - Drums - Eels - Filefishes - Flashlight fishes - Flatheads - Frogfishes - Goatfishes - Gobies - Groupers - Hamlets - Hawkfishes - Helmut Gurnards - Jacks - Jawfishes - Lion fishes - Livebearing Brotula - Lizardfishes - Mollies - Moorish Idol - Parrotfishes - Pinecone fishes - Pipefishes - Porcupine fishes - Pufferfishes - Rabbitfishes - Rays - Sand Perches - Scats - Scorpionfishes - Seabasses - Seahorses - Sea Moths - Sharks - Shrimpfishes - Snappers - Soldierfishes - Spinecheeks - Squirrelfishes - Surgeonfishes (Tangs) - Sweetlips - Tilefishes - Triggerfishes - Trumpetfishes - Wrasses
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* - Suited for the reef aquarium;
** - Better suited for the fish-only aquarium;
*** - Better left in nature;
**** - Needing an aquarium larger than 125 gallons; and,
***** - Needing their own private environment/special tankmates.