Spot-tail Butterflyfish
Chaetodon ocellicaudus
- Usual depth3–14 m
- Water temperature27–29 °C
- Best monthsMarch, July, and October
- How commonRare
Photo credit: (c) portioid, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
About this species
The spot-tailed butterflyfish, Chaetodon ocellicaudus, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the central Indo-west Pacific region from Malaysia to New Guinea, north to the Philippines and Palau in Micronesia.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Spot-tail butterflyfish”, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Read the article
Where and when
Where it has been recorded
Worldwide
Loading the map
Best months
Worldwide (open data)
- January: 26 records
- February: 28 records
- March: 49 records
- April: 35 records
- May: 33 records
- June: 22 records
- July: 37 records
- August: 20 records
- September: 34 records
- October: 39 records
- November: 33 records
- December: 37 records
Depth and water temperature
Depth
Mostly recorded at 3–14 m · Deepest record: 13.7 m
Water temperature
Recorded in surface water of 27–29 °C
Photos
(c) Jan Ebr & Ivana Ebrová, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) libby hepburn, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) libby hepburn, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
(c) amfstocker, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist 
no rights reserved · CC0 1.0 · iNaturalist 
(c) Ditch Townsend, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) · CC BY-SA · iNaturalist 
(c) Dan Schofield, some rights reserved (CC BY) · CC BY · iNaturalist
Names and classification
- English
- Spot-tail Butterflyfish, Spottail Butterflyfish, Spot-tail Butterfly Fish, Spot-tail Coralfish, Tail-spot Butterflyfish
Names in 3 more languages
- German
- Schwanzfleck-Falterfisch
- Spanish
- Pez Mariposa de Cola Manchada
- French
- Poisson-papillon à point caudal
Similar species
Threadfin butterflyfishChaetodon auriga
Citron ButterflyChaetodon citrinellus
Blackblotch ButterflyfishChaetodon ephippium
Sunburst butterflyfishChaetodon kleinii
Raccoon butterflyfishChaetodon lunula
Oval ButterflyfishChaetodon 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).
- 110 open-data records from 1999 to 2021.
- Species data updated October 26, 2026.
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