Yellowtail Butterflyfish advice plz...

[gooyferret]

My girlfriend just bought me one and im wondering what kind of care that i should take with a butterfly i have read the books and sites but dont tell much. Anyone have any advice or experience on them? My yellowtang dont seem to be very impressed and is picking on him. What should i feed him, and recommendations?

[ReefLady]

I think when people indicate "Yellowtail Butterfly", they are referring to the Pearlscale - Chaetodon xanthurus.

I'm not sure if you have a FO or a reef tank - I wouldn't keep this fish with corals -- many Butterflies eat coral polyps as part of their natural diet.

I'd feed it a wide range of foods, insuring that it gets a good selection of algae, as well as meaty (brine, mysis, etc.) foods. There are also some good sponge-based foods available that it will appreciate.

Here's a good article on Butterflys:

>>Good Butterflyfishes of the Genus Chaetodon<< ~ WetWebMedia

HTH,

[gooyferret]

Thanks Reef lady ya your correct its the pearlscale. Thanks for the info.