Raccoon Butterfly
Chaetodon fasciatus
| Stock | Variations | Price | Quantity |
|---|
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Saturday 12 PM – 4 PM
Sunday 12 PM – 9 PM
Healthy, stable animals from vetted suppliers — inspected before packing, shipped overnight. Decades of experience built this model so we can deliver premium livestock at 30%+ less than you'd pay elsewhere.
| Care Level | Moderate |
|---|---|
| Temperament | Semi-Aggressive |
| Reef Safe | No |
| Functional Benefit | Ornamental Only |
| Diet Type | Omnivore |
| Mininum Tank Size | 120 gallons |
| Max Size | 10 inches |
| Temperature | 74–80°F |
| pH Range | 8.1–8.4 |
| Specific Gravity | 1.022–1.025 |
The Raccoon Butterfly (Chaetodon fasciatus), also called the Red Sea Raccoon or Diagonal Butterflyfish, shows a yellow body with dark diagonal striping and a bold black eye mask. In the aquarium it spends the day cruising rockwork and grazing across surfaces, especially once it settles into a consistent feeding routine.
What You’ll Observe:
- Steady, confident swimming laps through open water with frequent stops to inspect ledges and crevices
- “Picking” behavior on rock and hard surfaces throughout the day, as if it’s always browsing
- Quick recognition of feeding time and active participation at the front of the tank
- A consistent patrol route it repeats as it learns your aquascape
To succeed, provide open swimming room with rockwork it can weave through, plus stable reef-level salinity and pH. Offer a varied mix of meaty frozen foods and quality prepared foods multiple times daily so it can graze and eat on its natural schedule. This fish does best when it can claim a comfortable feeding area without having to compete closely at every meal.
Will it help with pest anemones like Aiptasia?
Some individuals will sample small pest anemones, but results vary; plan on it as a grazer that may also “clean up” nuisance foods opportunistically.
Why does it peck at the rocks (and sometimes the glass) all day?
That constant browsing is normal for butterflyfish and is part of how they search for small foods on hard surfaces.
How do you get it eating quickly after introduction?
Many keepers have the best luck starting with familiar frozen foods (like mysis or chopped seafood) and then mixing in pellets or gel foods once it’s eating with confidence.
Can I keep two Raccoon Butterflies together?
It’s usually best to keep a single specimen unless you have a confirmed pair and enough space for both to establish a routine without crowding each other.
In a mixed tank, what does it usually “sample” first?
They tend to test fleshy, easy-to-nip items first (certain polyps and similar targets), while ignoring many hard, non-food surfaces once they’re well-fed.
Shipped with pure oxygen and temperature control so it arrives stress-free and ready to eat.
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