Butterflyfish (Chaetodontidae) Diet and Feeding

The Butterflyfish Chaetodontidae family consists of a large and diverse group of individual species that eat a wide variety of marine life in nature.

Diet

Butterflyfish feed on zooplankton, motile crustaceans, mollusks, various corals (soft and stony), anemones, tubeworms, and other invertebrates found on live rock. Primarily carnivorous, some species are omnivores eating marine algae and meaty foods, while others are strict corallivores, consuming live coral exclusively.

Suitable Aquarium Foods

Most Butterflyfish can be fed a varied diet of vitamin-enriched marine fish, crustacean, and mollusk flesh, mysid shrimp, and carnivore-appropriate frozen foods. Since these fish have small mouths, offer finely chopped meaty foods for easier consumption.

For specific omnivorous species, such as Chaetodon mertensii, punctatofasiatus, quadrimaculatus, and unimaculatus, live algae, vitamin-enriched vegetable matter, Spirulina, nori or other suitable preparations for omnivores should be offered. Although you may see other Butterflyfishes nibbling on these foods, they are not primary to their diets. Algae is something they incidentally ingest while intentionally eating crustaceans and other generalized invertebrates that reside or hide in it.

Suggested Feedings

At least 3 times a day.

Obligate Corallivores to Avoid

Chaetodon austriacus, baronessa, bennetti, larvatus, lunulatus, meyeri, octofasiatus, ornatissimus, rainfordi, and trifasicatus are all species that are suggested not be kept in captivity, or only by an aquarist that is well experienced. These Butterflyfish are dependent on a specialized diet of live coral polyps, which are nearly impossible to duplicate in the usual home aquarium environment. Unless you can provide them with the proper diet, in all likelihood they not survive.

Be careful with Chaetodon speculum, as this species comes very close to falling into this category. In the wild, this Butterflyfish almost exclusively feeds on stony coral polyps and coral mucus. It is not unusual for small juveniles and large adults to shun aquarium food substitutions. This fish requires a non-aggressive fish tank community with a least one other hardier Butterflyfish species present to encourage its feeding behavior.

Reef Tank Compatibility

Because fish in the Chaetodontidae family eat such a wide variety of soft and stony corals and other sessile invertebrates, “overall” they are not considered to be suitable for reef aquariums.

To learn more about compatible corals and specific dietary preferences for different Butterflyfish species, refer to our individual Butterflyfish Species Profiles.