''Chaetodon'' is a

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the equator, where the sun may shine directly overhead. This contrasts with the temperate or polar regions of Earth, where the Sun can never be directly overhead. This is because of Earth's ax ...

fish

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

in the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Chaetodontidae. Like their relatives, they are known as "butterflyfish". This genus is by far the largest among the Chaetodontidae, with about 90 living

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

included here, though most might warrant recognition as distinct genera.

Species

Extant species

There are currently 87 recognized species in this genus:

''Chaetodon sensu stricto''

* '' Chaetodon capistratus'' Linnaeus, 1758 (Foureye butterflyfish) * ''

Chaetodon ocellatus The spotfin butterflyfish (''Chaetodon ocellatus'') is species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish from the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the western Atlantic Ocean, in the Gulf of Mexico and most commonly found in the Caribbean S ...

Bloch Bloch is a surname of German origin. Notable people with this surname include: A *Adele Bloch-Bauer (1881–1925), Austrian entrepreneur *Albert Bloch (1882–1961), American painter *Alexandre Bloch (1857–1919), French painter *Alfred Bloch ( ...

, 1787 (Spotfin butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon striatus'' Linnaeus, 1758 (Banded butterflyfish)

''C. robustus'' group

* '' Chaetodon hoefleri''

Steindachner Franz Steindachner (11 November 1834 in Vienna – 10 December 1919 in Vienna) was an Austrian zoologist, ichthyologist, and herpetologist. He published over 200 papers on fishes and over 50 papers on reptiles and amphibians. Steindachner descri ...

, 1881 (Four-banded butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon robustus'' Günther, 1860 (Three-banded butterflyfish)

''Lepidochaetodon'' group

Image:Bep chaetodon punctatofasciatus.jpg,

Spotband butterflyfish The spot-banded butterflyfish or spotband butterflyfish (''Chaetodon punctatofasciatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family (biology), family Chaetodontidae. It is from the western Pacific Ocean. It ...

''Chaetodon (Exornator) punctatofasciatus'' Image:Chaetodon guttatissimus_01.jpg, Peppered butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Exornator) guttatissimus'' Image:8070 aquaimages.jpg, Fourspot butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Exornator) quadrimaculatus'' Image:Chaetodon unimaculatus.jpg, Teardrop butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Lepidochaetodon) unimaculatus'' Image:Bep chaetodon madagaskariensis.jpg, Seychelles butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rhombochaetodon) madagaskariensis'' Image:Chaetodon blackburnii Réunion.jpg, Brownburnie
''Chaetodon (Rhombochaetodon) blackburnii'' Image:Chaetodon interruptus, groupe.jpg, A group of Yellow teardrop butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Lepidochaetodon) interruptus'' Subgenus ''Exornator'' (including ''Burgessius, Heterochaetodon'' and possibly ''Rhombochaetodon''; tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon citrinellus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Speckled butterflyfish, Citron butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon dolosus'' C. G. E. Ahl, 1923 (African butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon guentheri'' C. G. E. Ahl, 1923 (Crochet butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon guttatissimus'' E. T. Bennett, 1833 (Peppered butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon miliaris'' Quoy &

Gaimard Joseph Paul Gaimard (31 January 1793 – 10 December 1858) was a French naval surgeon and naturalist. Biography Gaimard was born at Saint-Zacharie on January 31, 1793. He studied medicine at the naval medical school in Toulon, subsequent ...

, 1825 (Millet butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon multicinctus'' A. Garrett, 1863 (Pebbled butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon pelewensis'' Kner, 1868 (Sunset butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon punctatofasciatus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Spotband butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon quadrimaculatus'' J. E. Gray, 1831 (Fourspot butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon sedentarius'' Poey, 1860 (Reef butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Lepidochaetodon'' (including ''Tifia'') * '' Chaetodon daedalma'' D. S. Jordan & Fowler, 1902 (Wrought-iron butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon interruptus'' C. G. E. Ahl, 1923 (Yellow teardrop butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon kleinii'' Bloch, 1790 (Sunburst butterflyfish, black-lipped butterflyfish, Klein's butterflyfish) * ''

Chaetodon litus The Easter Island butterflyfish (''Chaetodon litus'') or white-tip butterflyfish, is a species of subtropical fish in the family Chaetodontidae. It is endemic to the seas around Easter Island, off the coast of mainland Chile. Description Butte ...

'' J. E. Randall & D. K. Caldwell, 1973 (Easter Island butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon nippon'' Steindachner & Döderlein ( de), 1883 (Japanese butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon smithi'' J. E. Randall, 1975 (Smith's butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon trichrous'' Günther, 1874 (Tahiti butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon unimaculatus'' Bloch, 1787 (Teardrop butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Rhombochaetodon'' (including ''Roaops'', might belong in ''Exornator''; tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon argentatus'' H. M. Smith & Radcliffe, 1911 (Asian butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon blackburnii'' Desjardins, 1836 (Brownburnie) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon burgessi'' G. R. Allen & Starck, 1973 (Burgess' butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon declivis'' J. E. Randall, 1975 (Marquesas butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon flavocoronatus'' R. F. Myers, 1980 (Yellow-crowned butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon fremblii'' E. T. Bennett, 1828 (Blue-striped butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon madagaskariensis'' C. G. E. Ahl, 1923 (Seychelles butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon mertensii'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Atoll butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon mitratus'' Günther, 1860 (Indian butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * ''

Chaetodon paucifasciatus The Eritrean butterflyfish or crown butterflyfish (''Chaetodon paucifasciatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family (biology), family Chaetodontidae. It is essentially just known from the Red Sea and t ...

'' C. G. E. Ahl, 1923 (Eritrean butterflyfish, Crown butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon tinkeri'' L. P. Schultz, 1951 (Hawaiian butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon xanthurus'' Bleeker, 1857 (Pearlscale butterflyfish, Philippines chevron butterflyfish, yellow-tailed butterflyfish)

''Megaprotodon'' group

Image:Chaetodon ornatissimus by NPS.jpg, Ornate butterflyfish
''Chaetodon ("Citharoedus") ornatissimus'' Image:Chaetodon reticulatus by NPS.jpg, Mailed butterflyfish
''Chaetodon ("Citharoedus") reticulatus'' Image:Bep chaetodon austriacus edit.jpg, Blacktail butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Corallochaetodon) austriacus'' Image:Bep chaetodon lunulatus.jpg,

Oval butterflyfish The oval butterflyfish (''Chaetodon lunulatus''), red-finned butterflyfish or redfin butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to Family (biology), family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean f ...

''Chaetodon (Corallochaetodon) lunulatus'' Image:Bep chaetodon octofasciatus.jpg, Eightband butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Discochaetodon) octofasciatus'' Image:Bep chaetodon baronessa.jpg, Eastern triangular butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Gonochaetodon) baronessa'' Image:Bep chaetodon trifascialis.jpg,

Chevron butterflyfish The chevron butterflyfish (''Chaetodon trifascialis''), also known as chevroned butterflyfish, triangulate butterflyfish or V-lined butterflyfish, is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It ...

''Chaetodon (Megaprotodon) trifascialis'' Image:Bep chaetodon speculum.jpg, Mirror butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Tetrachaetodon) speculum'' Image:Chaetodon zanzibarensis Réunion.JPG, Zanzibar butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Tetrachaetodon) zanzibarensis'' Subgenus ''"Citharoedus"'' (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon meyeri'' Bloch & J. G. Schneider, 1801 (Scrawled butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon ornatissimus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Ornate butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon reticulatus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Mailed butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Corallochaetodon'' (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon austriacus'' Rüppell, 1836 (Blacktail butterflyfish, exquisite butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon lunulatus'' Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 (Oval butterflyfish, red-finned butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon melapterus'' Guichenot, 1863 (Arabian butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon trifasciatus'' M. Park, 1797 (Melon butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Discochaetodon'' * '' Chaetodon aureofasciatus'' W. J. Macleay, 1878 (Golden butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon octofasciatus'' Bloch, 1787 (Eightband butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon rainfordi'' McCulloch, 1923 (Rainford's butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon tricinctus'' Waite, 1901 (Three-striped butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) Subgenus ''Gonochaetodon'' (tentatively placed here) Chaetodon triangulum Landaagiraavaru

* '' Chaetodon baronessa'' G. Cuvier, 1829 (Eastern triangle butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon larvatus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Hooded butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon triangulum'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Triangle butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Megaprotodon'' * '' Chaetodon trifascialis'' Quoy & Gaimard, 1825 (Chevron Butterflyfish, Triangulate butterflyfish, V-lined butterflyfish) Subgenus ''Tetrachaetodon'' * '' Chaetodon andamanensis'' Kuiter & Debelius ( de), 1999 (Andaman butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon bennetti'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Bluelashed butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon plebeius'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Blue-blotched butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon speculum'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Mirror butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon zanzibarensis'' Playfair ( fr), 1867 (Zanzibar butterflyfish)

''Rabdophorus'' group

Including ''Aspilurochaetodon, Chaetodontops'' Image:Chaetodon auriga by NPS.jpg,

Threadfin butterflyfish The threadfin butterflyfish (''Chaetodon auriga'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution. Distribution ''Chaetodon auriga'' is found in the Indo-Pacific region, fr ...

''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) auriga'' Image:Bep chaetodon falcula.jpg, Blackwedged butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) falcula'' File:Chaetodon melannotus edit4.jpg, Blackback butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) melannotus'' Image:Chaetodon lineolatus.jpg,

Lined butterflyfish The lined butterflyfish (''Chaetodon lineolatus'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish. a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae, one of the largest species in the genus ''Chaetodon''. It has a wide range from the Red Sea to Sou ...

''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) lineolatus'' Image:Chaetodon collare 1.jpg, Redtail butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) collare'' Image:Chaetodon flavirostris 1.jpg, Black butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) flavirostris'' Image:Chaetodon semilarvatus by Konstanze Löwe.JPG, Bluecheek butterflyfish
''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) semilarvatus'' Image:Chaetodon ephippium PLW edit.jpg,

Saddle butterflyfish The saddle butterflyfish (''Chaetodon ephippium'') is a species of marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans from Sri Lanka and the Cocos-Keeling Islands to th ...

''Chaetodon (Rabdophorus) ephippium'' * '' Chaetodon adiergastos'' Seale, 1910 (Philippine butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon auriga'' Forsskål, 1775 (Threadfin butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon auripes'' D. S. Jordan & Snyder, 1901 (Oriental butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon collare'' Bloch, 1787 (Redtail butterflyfish, Pakistani butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon decussatus'' G. Cuvier, 1829 (Indian vagabond butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon ephippium'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Saddle butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon falcula'' Bloch, 1795 (Blackwedged butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon fasciatus'' Forsskål, 1775 (Diagonal butterflyfish, Red Sea raccoon butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon flavirostris'' Günther, 1874 (Black butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon gardineri''

Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 9th and 10th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norma ...

, 1939 (Gardner's butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon leucopleura'' Playfair, 1867 (Somali butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon lineolatus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Lined butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon lunula'' ( Lacépède, 1802) (Raccoon butterflyfish, Crescent-masked butterflyfish, lunule butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon melannotus'' Bloch & J. G. Schneider, 1801 (Blackback butterflyfish) * ''

Chaetodon mesoleucos ''Chaetodon mesoleucos'', the white-faced butterflyfish, is a species off marine ray-finned fish, a butterflyfish, belonging to the family Chaetodontidae. It is found in the north western Indian Ocean. Description ''Chaetodon mesoleucos'' has a ...

'' Forsskål, 1775 (White-faced butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon nigropunctatus'' Sauvage, 1880 (Black-spotted butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here) * '' Chaetodon ocellicaudus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Spot-tail butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon oxycephalus'' Bleeker, 1853 (Spot-naped butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon pictus'' Forsskål, 1775 (Horseshoe butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon rafflesii'' Anonymous ennett 1830 (Latticed butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon selene'' Bleeker, 1853 (Yellow-dotted butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon semeion'' Bleeker, 1855 (Dotted butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon semilarvatus'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Bluecheek butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon ulietensis'' G. Cuvier, 1831 (Pacific double-saddle butterflyfish, false falcula butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon vagabundus'' Linnaeus, 1758 (Vagabond butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon wiebeli'' Kaup, 1863 (Hong Kong butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon xanthocephalus'' E. T. Bennett, 1833 (Yellowhead butterflyfish) (tentatively placed here)

''Incertae sedis''

Most are probably either ''Chaetodon sensu stricto'' or ''C. robustus'' group. * '' Chaetodon assarius'' Waite, 1905 (West Australian butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon dialeucos'' Salm & Mee, 1989 (Oman butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon humeralis'' Günther, 1860 * '' Chaetodon marleyi'' Regan, 1921 (Doublesash butterflyfish) * '' Chaetodon sanctaehelenae'' Günther, 1868 (Saint Helena butterflyfish)

Fossil species

The following fossil species are known: * Subgenus †''Arambourgchaetodon'' ** †'' Chaetodon ficheuri'' Arambourg, 1927 (Late

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

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) * Subgenus †''Blumchaetodon'' ** †''

Chaetodon wattsi ''Chaetodon'' is a tropical fish genus in the family (biology), family Chaetodontidae. Like their relatives, they are known as "butterflyfish". This genus is by far the largest among the Chaetodontidae, with about 90 living species included here, ...

'' Marramà, Giusberti & Carnevale, 2022 (

Early Oligocene The Rupelian is, in the geologic timescale, the older of two age (geology), ages or the lower of two stage (stratigraphy), stages of the Oligocene epoch (geology), Epoch/series (stratigraphy), Series. It spans the time between . It is preceded b ...

of Italy) The species '' Chaetodon penniger'' Bogachev, 1964 from the late Oligocene of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

cannot be confidently assigned to this genus due to the incompleteness of the fossil.

Proposed subgenera

Several

subgenera In biology, a subgenus ( subgenera) is a taxonomic rank directly below genus. In the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a subgeneric name can be used independently or included in a species name, in parentheses, placed between the ge ...

have been proposed for splitting out of this group. It is becoming clear how the genus might be split up, with a range of

DNA sequence A nucleic acid sequence is a succession of bases within the nucleotides forming alleles within a DNA (using GACT) or RNA (GACU) molecule. This succession is denoted by a series of a set of five different letters that indicate the order of the nu ...

data in large parts agreeing with S.D. Blum's landmark 1988

phylogenetic In biology, phylogenetics () is the study of the evolutionary history of life using observable characteristics of organisms (or genes), which is known as phylogenetic inference. It infers the relationship among organisms based on empirical dat ...

assessment of

osteology Osteology () is the scientific study of bones, practiced by osteologists . A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, osteology is the detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, microbone mo ...

. Basically, a core group around the

type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...

'' Chaetodon capistratus'' would remain in ''Chaetodon'', while maybe four

clade In biology, a clade (), also known as a Monophyly, monophyletic group or natural group, is a group of organisms that is composed of a common ancestor and all of its descendants. Clades are the fundamental unit of cladistics, a modern approach t ...

s would be split off. These could use the names ''Lepidochaetodon'', ''Megaprotodon'' and ''Rabdophorus'', and there is one unnamed group containing the three-banded butterflyfish (''C. robustus'') and its relatives. But the

monophyly In biological cladistics for the classification of organisms, monophyly is the condition of a taxonomic grouping being a clade – that is, a grouping of organisms which meets these criteria: # the grouping contains its own most recent comm ...

of the ''Lepidochaetodon'' group is not fully established; it is both unclear whether ''Rhombochaetodon'' is a lineage distinct from ''Exornator'', and whether ''Lepidochaetodon'' is indeed closer to these than to any other ''Chaetodon'', particularly to some lineages otherwise placed in ''Megaprotodon''. '' Prognathodes'', for some time contained in ''Chaetodon'', is worthy of recognition as full genus, as is ''Roa''. Historically, more distantly related fish were placed in ''Chaetodon'' too, for resembling them in details – e.g. the common scat ''Scatophagus argus'', which has a similar shape and size, as well as armored larvae like the Chaetodontidae – or simply because they are colorful, smallish, and unusual-looking – e.g. the quite unrelated

paradise fish The fork tailed paradisefish (often just called paradise fish, paradise-fish, paradisefish), or paradise gourami (''Macropodus opercularis'') is a species of gourami found in most types of fresh water in East Asia, ranging from the China to nort ...

, as ''C. chinensis''. The classification proposed in Fessler and Westneat is based on the species of ''Chaetodon'' they sampled and these sorted into the following clades: *Clade 1 **''Chaetodon robustus'' **''Chaetodon hoefleri'' *Clade 2 **''Chaetodon kleini'' **''Chaetodon unimaculatus'' **''Chaetodon fremblii'' **''Chaetodon burgessi'' **''Chaetodon xanthurus'' **''Chaetodon paucifasciatus'' **''Chaetodon mertensi'' **''Chaetodon quadrimaculatus'' **''Chaetodon citrinellus'' **''Chaetodon multicinctus'' **''Chaetodon punctatofasciatus'' **''Chaetodon pelewensis'' **''Chaetodon sedentarius'' **''Chaetodon dolosus'' **''Chaetodon miliaris'' **''Chaetodon guentheri'' *Clade 3 **''Chaetodon austriacus'' **''Chaetodon trifasciatus'' **''Chaetodon ornatissimus'' **''Chaetodon reticularis'' **''Chaetodon meyeri'' **''Chaetodon larvatus'' **''Chaetodon baronessa'' **''Chaetodon trifascialis'' **''Chaetodon rainfordi'' **''Chaetodon octofasciatus'' **''Chaetodon bennetti'' **''Chaetodon plebius'' **''Chaetodon speculum'' **''Chaetodon zanzibarensis'' *Clade 4 **''Chaetodon ocellatus'' **''Chaetodon capistratus'' **''Chaetodon striatus'' **''Chaetodon semeion'' **''Chaetodon ephippium'' **''Chaetodon selene'' **''Chaetodon melannotus'' **''Chaetodon ocellicaudus'' **''Chaetodon rafflesi'' **''Chaetodon auriga'' **''Chaetodon vagabundus'' **''Chaetodon collare'' **''Chaetodon adiergastos'' **''Chaetodon fasciatus'' **''Chaetodon lunula'' **''Chaetodon semilarvatus'' **''Chaetodon lineolatus'' **''Chaetodon oxycephalus'' **''Chaetodon falcula'' **''Chaetodon ulietensis''

Evolution & fossil record

The earliest confirmed specimens of ''Chaetodon'' are from Early Oligocene-aged coral reef deposits of Italy, belonging to the extinct species ''

''. This fossil is roughly concurrent when the family is thought to have radiated into its modern genus diversity. Indeterminate ''Chaetodon'' fossil specimens (including both articulated specimens and

otoliths An otolith (, ' ear + , ', a stone), also called otoconium, statolith, or statoconium, is a calcium carbonate structure in the saccule or utricle of the inner ear, specifically in the vestibular system of vertebrates. The saccule and utricle, i ...

) referred to '' Chaetodon hoefleri'' are known from the Late Oligocene of

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

and the mid-late Miocene of Poland. As it is not easy to distinguish this genus from close relatives, it may be that some Oligocene fossils are actually of other Chaetodontidae. The fossil record of this family is scant, with only ''

Chelmon ''Chelmon'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish in the family Chaetodontidae, the butterflyfishes. They are tropical species native to the western Pacific Ocean. Species There are currently three recognized species in this genus: * '' Chelmon ...

'' (or some similar genus like '' Chelmonops'' or '' Coradion'') being known from

remains. As even crude

molecular clock The molecular clock is a figurative term for a technique that uses the mutation rate of biomolecules to deduce the time in prehistory when two or more life forms diverged. The biomolecular data used for such calculations are usually nucleot ...

s suggest that the ancestors of the ''Chaetodon'' and the ''Chelmops'' lineage diverged in the

Late Eocene The Priabonian is, in the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS's geologic timescale, the latest age (geology), age or the upper stage (stratigraphy), stage of the Eocene epoch (geology), Epoch or series (stratigraphy), Series. It spans ...

already, nothing more can be said without new fossils being discovered.Paleobiology Database
/ref>

Footnotes

References

* Blum, S. D. (1988): ''Osteology and Phylogeny of the Chaetodontidae (Pisces: Perciformes)''. University of Hawaii, Honolulu. * Fessler, Jennifer L. & Westneat, Mark W. (2007): Molecular phylogenetics of the butterflyfishes (Chaetodontidae): Taxonomy and biogeography of a global coral reef fish family. ''

Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution ''Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal of evolutionary biology and phylogenetics. The journal is edited by E.A. Zimmer. Indexing The journal is indexed in: * EMBiology *Journal Citation Reports *Scopus ...

'' 45(1): 50–68. * Hsu, Kui-Ching; Chen, Jeng-Ping & Shao, Kwang-Tsao (2007): Molecular phylogeny of ''Chaetodon'' (Teleostei: Chaetodontidae) in the Indo-West Pacific: evolution in geminate species pairs and species groups. ''Raffles Bulletin of Zoology'' Supplement 14: 77-86
PDF fulltext
* Sepkoski, Jack (2002): 'Chaetodon'' ''In:'' A compendium of fossil marine animal genera. ''Bulletins of American Paleontology'' 364: 560
HTML database excerpt

External links

* * {{Authority control Taxa named by Carl Linnaeus Marine fish genera Rupelian genus first appearances Extant Rupelian first appearances