Can An African Butterfly Fish Fly?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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While many fish can break the surface of the water if they want to,

this species can actually glide

! What is this? This is made possible by their large pectoral fins that resemble butterfly wings. When they’re in the air they’ll fan these out to get as much surface area as possible so they can stay airborne longer.

How big does a butterfly fish get?

Butterflyfish mostly range from

12 to 22 cm (4.7 to 8.7 in) in length

. The largest species, the lined butterflyfish and the saddle butterflyfish, C. ephippium, grow to 30 cm (12 in).

Are African Butterfly Fish poisonous?

This means that an African butterfly would need to either be dangerous to eat and/or touch or has the ability to eject venom. The good news is that these fish are not dangerous at all (as long as you’re not a small fish that could be readily eaten)!

They do not contain any known toxins or otherwise venom

.

What can live with African Butterfly Fish?

Tankmates should be chosen with care. Though butterflyfish are not efficient fish predators, small fish that venture too close to their mouths will be eaten. Larger tetras and barbs are safe from predation.

Small bottom-oriented cichlids, catfish, Ctenopoma species, and mormyrids

are also excellent choices.

Do African butterfly fish like current?


It’s important to make sure you don’t have a current in their tank as well

. Find filtration and pumps that allow you to run what you need without stirring up the water. African Butterfly Fish like their water to be calm!

What do you feed butterfly fish?

Unless otherwise noted in individual species profiles, most all Butterflyfishes can be fed a varied diet of

vitamin-enriched marine fish, crustacean, and mollusk flesh, mysid shrimp, and any appropriate frozen preparations suitable for carnivores

.

Can African Butterfly Fish live together?

Tank Mates :

They can be relatively peaceful if kept with similar sized and larger tank mates

. Avoid keeping them with smaller top dwelling fish. Diet / Foods : An omnivore – provide a varied diet with live food, frozen food and they should accept flake food.

Are African butterflies Hardy?

These African butterflies are

hardy fish

and are relatively easy to care for. For these particular fish to survive appropriately, you need to control the aquarium’s temperature steady, which is ranges from 75 to 86 °F (24 to 30 °C).

Do butterflyfish fly?

Utilizing its wing-like pectoral fins and unique musculature, the African Butterfly Fish can explode from the water’s surface to snatch low-flying dragonflies, moths and other insects, and to escape predators.

It does not, as far as we know, glide above the water as do marine Flying Fishes

(please see photo).

Do butterfly fish eat anemones?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but

plenty of butterflys will gladly eat anemones

. Your best bet is to either get planktivores or keep an aggressive pair of clowns in the anemone.

What can live with a butterfly fish?

The temperature should be ideally set to 72 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit. The butterfly fish can be fed on a standard diet of tropical fish food and flakes with a mixture of plants and meat. Tank mates can include

gobies, parrotfish, and clownfish

, but some species may be more territorial than others.

What do you feed Hatchetfish?

Food and Tankmates

Common hatchetfish are devout carnivores; vegetative matter does not, to any appreciable measure, factor into their natural dietary regimen. Feed

protein-rich flakes, brine shrimp, tubifex, bloodworms, or small, floating, carnivore pellets

.

How much does a butterfly fish cost?

A butterflyfish typically costs

between $20 and $60

. While this price range is typical for many butterflyfish, they can vary in cost. Butterflyfish are priced according to their species and cost anywhere up to $4,000, depending on their unique characteristics and rarity.

How many fish can be in a butterfly tank?

Also known as the Yellow Zoster Butterflyfish.

Should be kept singularly, unless you have a few hundred gallon tank in which you can keep three

.

What is the smallest butterfly fish?


Speckled butterflyfish
Genus: Chaetodon Subgenus: Chaetodon (Exornator) Species: C. citrinellus Binomial name

How big do bumblebee catfish get?

At a typical adult size of

6 inches (15 cm)

, it is a perfect bottom dweller for the medium to large aquarium and it is an excellent tankmate for most other fish that are too large to be considered prey. The Asian Bumblebee Catfish is generally peaceful, although it can be territorial with other bottom dwellers.

How do butterfly fish breed?

Banded Butterflyfish do not reproduce in groups but form monogamous pairs before this spawning behavior. They are multi-batch spawners: they

broadcast eggs and sperm into the water column

. The Banded Butterflyfish has never been successfully aquacultured before, and there are no reports of spawning in captivity.

How do you take care of African butterfly fish?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9qOjMfiJCI

Can you keep multiple butterfly fish?

Care and Tank Conditions

When it comes to butterflyfish,

the general rules are severely limited as every species thrives on different conditions, making it difficult for aquarists to combine two or more in the same tank

. Ideally, you should be perfectly aware of the breed/specie you have and go from there.

Do butterfly fish have teeth?


Yes, butterflyfish have teeth

. They have small, close-set, and comb-like sets of teeth. Butterflyfish have evolved with these teeth in order to eat coral, shrimp, plankton, and crustaceans. Despite their teeth, most species of butterflyfish are not aggressive and will work nicely as tank mates for other fish.

Will butterfly fish eat shrimp?

Yes! Butterflyfish love to eat meaty foods, and

shrimps are one of the favorites of butterflyfish

.

Are butterfly fish aggressive?

Freshwater butterflyfish are kept in large aquaria, although a single specimen should be kept as the only top-level fish, as

they can be aggressive to their own kind and others at surface level

.

How big do baby Whalefish get?

Size

8 Inches
Hardness Moderate Diet Carnivore Lifespan 10 years Minimum Tank Size 30 Gallons
Diane Mitchell
Author
Diane Mitchell
Diane Mitchell is an animal lover and trainer with over 15 years of experience working with a variety of animals, including dogs, cats, birds, and horses. She has worked with leading animal welfare organizations. Diane is passionate about promoting responsible pet ownership and educating pet owners on the best practices for training and caring for their furry friends.