🐠 Yellow Head Butterflyfish (Chaetodon xanthocephalus)
Marine Not-Reef-Safe Butterflyfish • Pearl-White Body With a Golden-Yellow "Halo" & Faint Diagonal Stripes • Genuinely Rare in the Aquarium Trade • Intermediate Marine Fish
 
📋 The Yellow Head Butterflyfish, also known as the Yellowhead Butterflyfish or Gold Rimmed Butterflyfish, has a genuinely elegant, dominant pearl-white body coloration accentuated by a golden-yellow "halo" outlining its perimeter and namesake head, with faint diagonal lines running through the body.
Native to the Western Indian Ocean, from East Africa to Sri Lanka and the Maldives, this species genuinely inhabits sheltered, coral-rich reefs at around 20 metres depth, and is genuinely closely related to the Saddled Butterflyfish, with natural hybrids between the two genuinely documented where their ranges overlap.
We want to be honest that this species is genuinely rare in the aquarium trade, and medium-sized specimens around 10cm genuinely tend to acclimatise better than smaller or larger individuals, adapting more readily to prepared foods. This species can genuinely be a little shy when first introduced, but becomes bold and assertive once settled, competing readily with other fish at feeding time. We want to be upfront: this species is not reef safe, and will genuinely pick at coral polyps and crustaceans, so please house it in a fish-only setup with live rock rather than a mixed reef display.
 
⚪🟡 Highlights
🎨 Pearl-White Body With a Golden Halo: A genuinely elegant, distinctive butterflyfish
💎 Genuinely Rare in the Trade: An uncommon find for dedicated collectors
🧬 Genuine Documented Hybridisation: Known to hybridise with the Saddled Butterflyfish
⚠️ Not Reef Safe: Will pick at coral polyps and crustaceans
💪 Genuinely Assertive Once Settled: Becomes a confident, competitive feeder