The yellow longnose butterflyfish or forceps butterflyfish (''Forcipiger flavissimus'') is a

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), ...

of marine

fish A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...

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. It is a small

which grows up to in length.Lieske & Myers,''Coral reef fishes'',Princeton University Press, 2009, This species can also be found in the

aquarium An aquarium (: aquariums or aquaria) is a vivarium of any size having at least one transparent side in which aquatic plants or animals are kept and displayed. fishkeeping, Fishkeepers use aquaria to keep fish, invertebrates, amphibians, aquati ...

trade.

Range and Distribution

The yellow longnose butterflyfish is widespread throughout the

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 ...

waters of the

Indo-Pacific The Indo-Pacific is a vast biogeographic region of Earth. In a narrow sense, sometimes known as the Indo-West Pacific or Indo-Pacific Asia, it comprises the tropical waters of the Indian Ocean, the western and central Pacific Ocean, and the ...

area from the eastern coast of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

included, and is also found in the eastern

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

from

Baja California Baja California, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Baja California, is a state in Mexico. It is the northwesternmost of the 32 federal entities of Mexico. Before becoming a state in 1952, the area was known as the North Territory of B ...

to the

Revillagigedo Islands The Revillagigedo Islands (, ) or Revillagigedo Archipelago are a group of four volcanic islands in the Pacific Ocean, known for their unique ecosystem. They lie approximately from Socorro Island south and southwest of Cabo San Lucas, the sout ...

and the Galapagos. It is a small

which grows up to in length. This species can also be found in the

trade.

Territoriality

Being

territorial A territory is an area of land, sea, or space, belonging or connected to a particular country, person, or animal. In international politics, a territory is usually a geographic area which has not been granted the powers of self-government, ...

, yellow longnose butterflyfish patrol their patches of coral with a

monogamous Monogamy ( ) is a relationship of two individuals in which they form a mutual and exclusive intimate partnership. Having only one partner at any one time, whether for life or serial monogamy, contrasts with various forms of non-monogamy (e.g. ...

partner. However, instances of overt

aggression Aggression is behavior aimed at opposing or attacking something or someone. Though often done with the intent to cause harm, some might channel it into creative and practical outlets. It may occur either reactively or without provocation. In h ...

among ''F. flavissimus'' have been observed between territory holders and individuals of the same sex. Chasing is rare, but when it does occur, males chase males and females chase females. Females defend food resources from other females, while males defend territories containing a female from other males.

Territoriality In ethology, territory is the sociographical area that an animal consistently defends against conspecific competition (or, occasionally, against animals of other species) using agonistic behaviors or (less commonly) real physical aggression. ...

is a favorable strategy for a species to adopt primarily when resources are temporally stable, predictable, and evenly distributed throughout a territory. Territoriality is commonly displayed by benthic-feeding longnose butterflyfish, therefore, because their main dietary resources fulfill these characteristics. Their monogamous pairing appears to be closely linked to their territorial behavior. Although several could cause a species to evolve monogamous behavior, the necessity for biparental care does not apply to longnose butterflyfish because they lay pelagic, or freely floating, eggs. One source of selective pressure responsible for the monogamous pairs observed could be the advantage of territorial defense it provides. Monogamy is favored when a pair makes the defense of one or more resources more efficient than defense by a solitary individual. Longnose butterflyfish pairs have been confirmed by studies to be

heterosexual Heterosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the opposite sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, heterosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions ...

and pair

fidelity Fidelity is the quality of faithfulness or loyalty. Its original meaning regarded duty in a broader sense than the related concept of '' fealty''. Both derive from the Latin word , meaning "faithful or loyal". In the City of London financial m ...

has been observed for periods of up to seven or more years. Besides the advertisement displays accomplished through monogamous pairing, territorial domination by longnose butterflyfish has also been observed by means of acoustic behaviors, which provide important cues and social signals during fish communication. Emitting sounds through complicated body movements is another technique they use to advertise territorial boundaries. Potential rivals are able to assess body size of a competitor based on the duration and intensity of the sound a yellow longnose butterflyfish produces. The duration and intensity of the sounds emitted during antagonistic behaviors, such as the defense of one's territory, often predict the ability of an individual to secure that territory. A sound of long duration and high intensity, therefore, often indicates an individual has a large territory. Defending territory is the strategy these species adopt to compete for and maximize their claims over resources.

References

External links

*
WoRMS - World Register of Marine Species - Forcipiger flavissimus Jordan & McGregor, 1898
* * Photos o
Forcipiger flavissimus
in iNaturalist {{Taxonbar, from=Q1499346 Forcipiger Fish of the Pacific Ocean Fish of Central America Fish of Hawaii Fish of Mexican Pacific coast Galápagos Islands coastal fauna Natural history of the Revillagigedo Islands Fish described in 1898 Taxa named by David Starr Jordan