What You don't know about fish of the Red Sea?

We present another article from our book, which describes various species of fish commonly found in the Red Sea, illustrated with photographs collected during our time working as diving instructors in Hurghada. The first article we published was about Red Sea sharks, and now we would like to introduce you to butterflyfish.

About Butterflyfish

1. Fish with disk-shaped body and vivid colors

These smaller fish adorn the tropical and subtropical coral seas. In total, there are about 120 different species, in the Red Sea we commonly encounter ten species. Shallow coral gardens are ideal for observing or photographing these fish. Butterflyfish have thin, disk-shaped bodies, slightly elongated mouth and reaching a size of about 10 to 20 centimeters. Their common feature is a colorful coloring. They are covered with striking patterns, which usually include shades of black, white, yellow, red, orange and sometimes blue. At night, butterflyfish hide in crevices in the cliff and their color may be significantly different from the day. Many species have dark bands around the eyes. As with butterflies, they can have spots on the sides that resemble eyes. In this way, they are able to deceive predators who do not know which end to attack

2. Butterflyfish can have a partner for life

They often live in smaller groups. Some species live alone until they find a partner with whom they live a lifetime. Butterflyfish release the eggs directly into the open water, which thus becomes part of the plankton. After hatching, the fry on the body form protective plates, which disappear when the fish grows. The fish usually live to be around 8-10 years old. They feed on zooplankton - coral polyps, worms and other small invertebrates.

3. Species of butferflyfish in the Red Sea

The following species can be observed diving on the coral reefs of the Red Sea: white-yellow Threadfin butterflyfish (Chaetodon auriga), pairs or schools of yellow Bluecheek butterflyfish (Chaetodon semilarvatus), Blackback butterflyfish (Chaetodon melannotus), Diagonal butterflyfish (Chaetodon fasciatus), Blacktail butterflyfish (Chaetodon austriacus), big Lined butterflyfish (Chaetodon lineolatus), Chevron butterflyfish (Chaetodon trifascialis), shoals of Red Sea bannerfish (Heniochus intermedius). And also white-orange Hooded butterflyfish (Chaetodon larvatus) or white-red Eritrean butterflyfish (Chaetodon paucifasciatus). Fish that are similar to the butterflyfish, especially in that they also have laterally compressed bodies, are for example angelfish or batfish.

We are preparing:

About Sea Animals

You will find various animals in this book you can meet while diving on coral reefs. The life of the Red Sea is really rich and colorful. You can meet mammals, reptiles, echinoderms, cephalopods, snails, polychaetes, bivalves, crustaceans and more... So if you would like to know more about dolphins, sea turtles, nudibranches, octopuses, sea stars, shrimps and crabs living in the Red Sea, you will find it here.

About Corals

We would like to provide you with an overview of the different types of corals found in the Red Sea. We will bring you a new series of articles dedicated to corals. Due to the diversity of coral species, we will try to sort corals according to both species and visual similarities. It might seem to many that they are more plants or some kind of inanimate petrified formations. However, these are colonies of invertebrate animals - tiny genetically identical coral polyps.