The aim of this study was to determine the consequences for
juvenile butterflyfishes that settle into and feed entirely on
bleached coral tissue during their early life history. Specifically, we
tested whether there was a difference in the growth and condition
of juvenile butterflyfishes inhabiting bleached versus healthy
corals. We also examined whether habitat condition (healthy,
bleached and recently dead coral colonies) influenced the patterns
of habitat use by juvenile butterflyfishes. The butterflyfishes used
in this study were Chaetodon aureofasciatus and Chaetodon lunulatus,
both of which, settle exclusively to distinct colonies of
branching corals (Pratchett et al., 2008b) and had recruited in very
high abundance to reef habitats on the western side of Lizard Island,
northern Great Barrier Reef, Australia, at this time of the
experiment.