{{Short description|Genus of fishes}} {{Automatic_taxobox | image = Butterfly Pavilion 8-23 (20915221696) (cropped).jpg | image_caption = ''Ctenochaetus strigosus'' | taxon = Ctenochaetus | authority = T. N. Gill, 1884 | type_species = ''Acanthurus strigosus'' | type_species_authority = E. T. Bennett 1828<ref name = CofF>{{Cof family|family=Acanthuridae|access-date=2 October 2023}}</ref> | synonyms = {{Genus list | Acronurus | Günther, 1861 | Ctenodon | Klunzinger, 1871 }} | synonyms_ref = <ref name = CofF/> | subdivision_ranks = Species | subdivision = See text }}
'''''Ctenochaetus''''', or '''bristletooth tangs''', is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Acanthuridae, which includes the surgeonfishes, unicornfishes and tangs. These fishes are found in the Indo-Pacific region. They have many, small flexible teeth and some species have the common name bristletooth.
==Taxonomy== ''Ctenochaetus'' was first proposed as a genus in 1884 by the American biologist Theodore Gill with ''Acanthurus strigosus'' as its type species.<ref name = CofF/> ''A. strigosus'' had originally been described in 1828 by Edward Turner Bennett from the Sandwich Islands.<ref name = Bennett>{{cite journal |author=Bennett, E. T. |year=1828 |title=Observations on the fishes contained in the collection of the Zoological Society. On some fishes from the Sandwich Islands. |journal=Zoological Journal, London |volume= 4 |issue=13 |pages=31–42}}</ref>
=== Paraphyly === It has been proposed that this genus and ''Acanthurus'' should be merged as otherwise ''Acanthurus'' is paraphyletic. ''Ctenochaetus'' species all nest within ''Acanthurus'', while ''A. nubilus'' and ''A. pyroferus'' are furthermore nested within ''Ctenochaetus''.<ref name="Sorenson">{{cite journal |author1=Laurie Sorenson |author2=Francesco Santini |author3=Giorgio Carnevale |author4=Michael E. Alfaro |title=A multi-locus timetree of surgeonfishes (Acanthuridae, Percomorpha), with revised family taxonomy |journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution |volume=68 |issue=1 |year=2013 |pages=150–160 |issn=1055-7903 |doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2013.03.014 |pmid=23542000 |bibcode=2013MolPE..68..150S }}</ref> The 5th edition of ''Fishes of the World'' recognises these two genera as valid and classifies them as the two genera in the tribe Acanthurini of the subfamily Acanthurinae within the family Acanthuridae.<ref name="Nelson5">{{cite book |title=Fishes of the World |edition=5th |author1=J. S. Nelson |author2=T. C. Grande |author3=M. V. H. Wilson |year=2016 |pages=497–502 |publisher=Wiley |isbn=978-1-118-34233-6}}</ref>
==Etymology== ''Ctenochaetus'' Is a compound of ''cteno'', meaning “comb”, and ''chaetus'', meaning “bristle”. Gill did not explain what this alluded to but it is almost certain to allude to the bristle or comb like teeth of these fishes.<ref name = ETYFish>{{cite web | url = https://etyfish.org/acanthuriformes2/ | title = Order ACANTHURIFORMES (part 2): Families EPHIPPIDAE, LEIOGNATHIDAE, SCATOPHAGIDAE, ANTIGONIIDAE, SIGANIDAE, CAPROIDAE, LUVARIDAE, ZANCLIDAE and ACANTHURIDAE | work = The ETYFish Project Fish Name Etymology Database | editor1= Christopher Scharpf | editor2 = Kenneth J. Lazara | name-list-style = amp |date = 12 January 2021 | access-date = 4 October 2023 | publisher = Christopher Scharpf and Kenneth J. Lazara}}</ref>
==Species== ''Ctenochaetus'' currently has nine recognised species classified within it:<ref name=Fishbase>{{FishBase genus | genus = Ctenochaetus| month = June | year = 2023}}</ref> {| class="wikitable" |+ !Species !Common name !Image |- |''Ctenochaetus binotatus'' <small>J. E. Randall, 1955</small> |Twospot surgeonfish |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus cyanocheilus'' <small>J. E. Randall & Clements, 2001</small> |Short-tail bristle-tooth |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus flavicauda'' <small>Fowler, 1938</small> |Whitetail bristletooth |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus hawaiiensis'' <small>J. E. Randall, 1955</small> |Chevron tang |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus marginatus'' <small>(Valenciennes, 1835)</small> |Striped-fin surgeonfish |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus striatus'' <small>(Quoy & Gaimard, 1825)</small> |Striated surgeonfish |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus strigosus'' <small>(E. T. Bennett, 1828)</small> |Kole tang |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus tominiensis'' <small>J. E. Randall, 1955</small> |Tomini surgeonfish |frameless|200x200px |- |''Ctenochaetus truncatus'' <small>J. E. Randall & Clements, 2001</small> |Indian gold-ring bristle-tooth |frameless|200x200px |}
==Characteristics== ''Ctenochaetus'' surgeonfishes are closely related to the surgeonfishes in the genus ''Acanthurus'' and are very similar to them. They have a different jaw structure from the ''Acanthurus'' surgeonfishes having numerous brush or bristle like flexible teeth. Their dorsal fin is supported by 8 spines and between 24 and 31 soft rays while their anal fins are supported by 3 spines and between 22 and 28 soft rays.<ref name = WIOF>{{cite book |author=John E. Randall |chapter=Family Acanthuridae |pages=219–244 |title=Coastal Fishes of the Western Indian Ocean |volume=5 |editor1=Phillip C Heemstra |editor2=Elaine Heemstra |editor3=David A Ebert |editor4=Wouter Holleman |editor5=John E Randall |year=2022 |isbn=978-1-990951-32-9 |publisher=South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity |url=https://saiab.ac.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/1._wiof_volume_5_text.pdf |access-date=2023-07-17 |archive-date=2023-06-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230612092043/https://saiab.ac.za/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/1._wiof_volume_5_text.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name = ETYFish/> These fish vary in length from a maximum published standard length of {{cvt|15|cm}} in ''C. strigosus'' to a maximum published total length of {{cvt|27|cm}} in ''C. marginatus''.<ref name = Fishbase/>
==Distribution== ''Ctenochaetus'' surgeonfishes have a wide Indo-Pacific distribution. They are found from the eastern coast of Africa, including the Red Sea eastwards through the tropical Indian Ocean into the Pacific Ocean as far east as Hawaii.<ref name = WIOF/><ref name = Fishbase/>
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q137748}}
Category:Acanthurini Category:Ctenochaetus Category:Marine fish genera Category:Taxa named by Theodore Gill Category:Taxa described in 1884