crochet butterflyfish

Chaetodon miliaris

Fish
IUCN: Least concern

Usual depth5–25 m
Water temperature24–29 °C
Best monthsSeptember
How commonOccasional

Photo credit: (c) Robin White, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

About this species

The millet butterflyfish is a species of butterflyfish in the family Chaetodontidae. Other common names include the lemon butterflyfish and the millet-seed butterflyfish. It is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands and the Johnston Atoll, where it is found at depths down to 250 m (820 ft). Although it has a limited range, it is common around Hawaii, and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has listed its conservation status as being of "least concern".

Text from the Wikipedia article “Millet butterflyfish”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article

Where and when

Where it has been recorded

Worldwide

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Best months

Worldwide (open data)

January: 54 records
February: 52 records
March: 53 records
April: 66 records
May: 68 records
June: 137 records
July: 280 records
August: 696 records
September: 1,498 records
October: 533 records
November: 131 records
December: 53 records

Depth and water temperature

Depth

Mostly recorded at 5–25 m · Deepest record: 204 m

0–10 m: 942 records
10–20 m: 1,299 records
20–30 m: 622 records
30–40 m: 12 records
40–50 m: 13 records
50–60 m: 22 records
60–70 m: 20 records
70–80 m: 25 records
80–90 m: 20 records
90–100 m: 20 records
100–110 m: 15 records
110+ m: 24 records

Water temperature

Recorded in surface water of 24–29 °C

22–24 °C: 54 records
24–26 °C: 794 records
26–28 °C: 0 records
28–30 °C: 1 records

Photos

(c) Robin White, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) cello caruso-turiello, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist
(c) Stella, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
(c) Tyler Bishop, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist

Names and classification

English: crochet butterflyfish, Lemon butterfly, Lemon Butterflyfish, Millet Butterflyfish, Millet-seed Butterflyfish, Milletseed Butterflyfish

Names in 2 more languages

German: Hirsekorn-Falterfisch, Zitronen-Falterfisch
Spanish: Pez mariposa mijo

Other scientific names: Chaetodon mantelliger

Similar species

Threadfin butterflyfish
Chaetodon auriga
Citron Butterfly
Chaetodon citrinellus
Blackblotch Butterflyfish
Chaetodon ephippium
Sunburst butterflyfish
Chaetodon kleinii
Raccoon butterflyfish
Chaetodon lunula
Oval Butterflyfish
Chaetodon lunulatus

Sources and credits

Names and taxonomy: WoRMS (CC BY 4.0) and the GBIF Backbone (CC BY 4.0). Photos: iNaturalist observers, each under the licence shown (CC0, CC BY or CC BY-SA).

Depth, temperature, months and maps: records from OBIS and GBIF under CC0 or CC BY.
Descriptions: Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA, each linked to its article.
Conservation status as published by GBIF (IUCN Red List).
3,584 open-data records from 1889 to 2019.
Species data updated November 1, 2026.

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