SPOTFIN BUTTERFLYFISH Chaetodon ocellatus
Family Chaetodontidae (Butterflyfishes)
SPOTFIN BUTTERFLYFISH Chaetodon ocellatus
Body deep; strongly compressed; color silvery-white with yellow fins, a dark bar through the eye, a large dark spot at the base of the soft dorsal fin and, in males, another small dark spot on the posterior margin of the soft dorsal fin. Three other butterflyfishes are known to occur at Gray's Reef but are more common on deeper reefs farther offshore: the bank butterflyfish (C. aya), which has two diverging dark bands, the reef butterflyfish (C. sedentarius), which has a dark bar through the eye and another across the caudal peduncle and anal fin, and the banded butterflyfish (C. striatus) which has four dark bands. Spotfin adults are often seen in pairs on rocky outcrops at Gray's Reef and have been observed as nearshore as the Savannah Navigational Light Tower (8 nmi offshore). Juveniles have been seen under marina docks in Savannah. Massachusetts to Brazil. 5-7 in.
Family Pomacanthidae (angelfishes)
BLUE ANGELFISH Holacanthus bemludensis
Body deep, mouth small, a large subopercular spine, soft dorsal and anal fins long, adult color blue-gray to purple with yellow fin margins and distinct iridescent blue markings on the head. Juveniles are gold and blue with white bars. The blue angelfish and the queen angelfish (H. ciliaris), which has a median dark spot edged with blue above the eyes anterior to the dorsal fin, interbreed, producing intermediate offspring. This attractive reef resident occurs regularly at Gray's Reef but is abundant on deeper reefs offshore. North Carolina to Mexico. 18 in.
Family Pomacentridae (damselfishes)
BICOLOR DAMSELFISH Pomacentrus partitus
A sharp vertical demarcation between the dark front half of the body and the light, almost white posterior part of the body; median fin margins dark. Like the other damselfishes at Gray's reef, its abundance varies widely from year to year and is often absent in the winter North Carolina to Caribbean. 5 in.
YELLOWTAIL REEFFISH Chromis enchrysurus
Upper part of the body including the soft dorsal, anal and caudal fins yellowish; a light blue line extends from the upper lip over the eye to a point above the lateral line. The yellowtail reeffish is a common damselfish on deeper reefs and is occasionally observed at Gray's Reef. Like most damselfishes it fiercely defends its territory on the reef. North Carolina to West Indies. 4 in.
COCOA DAMSELFISH Pomacentrus variabilis
The anterior part of the body to a point just beyond a black spot at the junction of the spinous and soft dorsal fins is blue and the rest of the body is yellow. A small, dark, saddle-like spot on the caudal peduncle distinguishes it from the beaugregory (P. leucostictus) which lacks the spot and has not been found at Gray's Reef. The colorful juveniles are occasionally common at Gray's Reef in the summer, adults are rarely seen here. North Carolina to Brazil. 4 in.
Family Acanthuridae (surgeonfishes)
DOCTORFISH Acanthurus chirurgus
Body deep, compressed; a blade-like bony spine projects from each side of the caudal peduncle; caudal fin slightly forked; color gray to brown with thin dark bars; caudal peduncle light in the young only. The ocean surgeonfish (A. bahianus) lacks the bars and has a lunate (concave) caudal fin. Both species have been observed at Gray's Reef but only as young during the summer. New York to Brazil. 12 in.