White-face Butterflyfish

White-face Butterflyfish

The White-face Butterflyfish Chaetodon mesoleucos is a shy, secretive fish in the wild. That makes it a challenge for divers to locate, and when they do spot one it is difficult to approach with a camera as it quickly darts into hiding. It also has a rather restricted range where it occurs. It is one of only a handful of butterflyfish that are found in the Red Sea. It is also found in the Western Indian Ocean from the Gulf of Aden eastward to the island of Socotra, Yemen. If you can obtain this species, it will be rather costly but it will make a wonderful display.

This butterflyfish is moderate in size, growing to just over 6 inches (16 cm) in length, but is very distinguished in appearance and easily recognized. Some other common names it is known by are the White-fronted Butterflyfish, Paleface Butterflyfish, and Mesoleucos Butterfly. As its common names aptly describe, it is white towards the front and has a pale bluish gray face with a dark vertical black band running through they eye. The rest of the body is a darker hue marked with thin vertical black striping. The tail fin has a white band near the base and the rest is black.