Sea butterfly

← (46) Sturgeon

New Horizons fish

Sea horse (48) →

New Horizons fish
← (46) Sturgeon	→ Sea horse (48)

Not to be confused with the butterfly fish.

Sea butterfly
Image gallery
Real-world info
Name: Clione limacina (naked sea butterfly) Family: Clionidae (sea butterflies)
Main appearances
DnM DnM+ AC DnMe+ iQue WW CF NL NH
Other appearances
Film HHD aF PC
Names in other languages  クリオネ  海天使  Clione  Mariposa marina  Cavolinia  Морской ангел  클리오네  海天使  Papillon de mer  Mariposa marina  See-Engel  Zeevlinder

The sea butterfly is a sea fish in the Animal Crossing series introduced in Animal Crossing: Wild World. During its availability from December to February, the sea butterfly is the only saltwater fish with a tiny shadow size.

Catch details

In Wild World

#36

"I caught a sea butterfly! I didn't even use a net!"

Description	A type of snail, it eats plankton and shellfish. It navigates the water by flapping its "wings."
Time of year	Dec – Feb
Time of day	All day
Peak times	Dec – Jan
Location	Sea
Shadow size	Tiny
Fish size	3 cm
Selling price	1,000 Bells
Furniture size

In City Folk

#38

"I caught a sea butterfly! I wonder if it used to be a sea caterpillar?"

Description	Some say these resemble angels, but they look like devils when they feed.
Time of year	Dec – Feb
Time of day	All day
Peak times	N/A
Location	Sea
Shadow size	Tiny
Fish size	About 1.2 in.
Selling price	1,000 Bells
Furniture size

In New Leaf

#43

"I caught a sea butterfly! I didn't even use a net!"

Time of year	Dec – Feb
Time of day	All day
Peak times	9 PM – 4 AM
Location	Sea
Shadow size	Tiny
Fish size	3 cm
Selling price	1,000 Bells
Furniture size

In Pocket Camp

#80

Event availability	Fishing Tourney #2
Location	Saltwater Shores
Shadow size	Tiny
Fish size	2.5 cm - 3.5 cm
Rarity	★★
Catch rate	Cannot be caught at this time
Selling price	300 Bells
Request reward	1,500 Bells, 3 Friendship Points Fortune Cookie (20%), Bronze Treats (30%)

In New Horizons

In Animal Crossing: New Horizons, the sea butterfly appears as a default item in Wade's house.

#47

"I caught a sea butterfly! Try not to confuse it for a sea moth!"

Time of year	North: Dec – Mar South: Jun – Sep
Time of day	All day
Location	Sea
Shadow size	Tiny
Rarity	Common
Spawn requirement	Appears from the start of the game
Selling prices	Nook's Cranny:  1,000 Bells  C.J.:  1,500 Bells
Furniture size

Donating to the museum

The sea butterfly can be donated to the museum by talking to Blathers. Below is what he says during the donation:

In Wild World

"The sea butterfly is in the same family as snails, as you may or may not know. You might think it's strange to have a snail without a shell, eh wot? Indeed, well, slugs are also snails without shells! I must admit, being lumped in with slugs probably angers the sea butterfly."

The sea butterfly is placed in the large sea tank in the aquatic display in the back room.

In City Folk

It occupies a large glass tube in the lower-right corner of the fish exhibition, with other small sea fish.

In New Leaf

Upon donation, the information board outside the tank that houses the sea butterfly says:

"Sea butterflies go with the flow, as they'll drift in cold winter waters along the ice floes. They are called "ice-floe angels" because of the mysterious way they swim with their winglike arms. Their heads will open up when they make an attempt to catch their helpless prey. Once its head is opened, it grabs its prey with six special feelers called "buccal cones". The only place you'll find both cold-water and tropical sea butterflies swimming together is in this game."

In New Horizons

When donating to Blathers or selecting "Tell me about this!" in New Horizons, he will provide the following information about the fish:

"Such mystery! Such grace! Did you know that the sea butterfly's scientific name is Thecosomata? A very rough translation of that is "shell body." Indeed, this illustrious creature is related to snails! However, it reminds me much more of an elegant feathered friend, the way it flies through the water. With such grace in flying, one shouldn't wonder if it's related to the owl, hoo hoo!"

When the sea butterfly is donated, six of them will appear in the northern room of the fish exhibit, in a tall tubular tank with a light blue crystal. It is one of the few fish which the museum will have multiple of upon its donation.

Fishing Tourney

During a Fishing Tourney, when given a sea butterfly, Chip will say the following dialogue.

In City Folk

"With sea butterfly, it's all about the texture! Bouncy, squishy, and melty at once! Nyuuuk nyuk nyuk nyuk!"

In New Leaf

"When it comes to sea butterflies, you don't need a net or nothing. Nope, just a pole! Nyuk nyuk nyuk! ...OK, down it goes!"

Gallery

For more images, view this subject's gallery.

• 

  Animal Crossing: Wild World

• 

  Animal Crossing: City Folk

• 

  Animal Crossing: New Leaf

• 

  Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Real-world information

A real-life Clione limacina

The sea butterfly that appears in the series is specifically the Clione limacina, also known as the naked sea butterfly, sea angel, and common clione. They can be found in the cold waters of the Arctic Ocean, Antarctic Ocean and in the North Atlantic; mirrored, in-game, by their appearance during the winter months. They can grow up to 5 centimeters in length.

Names in other languages

	クリオネ kurione	Clione
	클리오네 keullione	Clione
	海天使 hǎi tiānshí	Sea angel
	Морской ангел Morskoy angel	Sea angel
	Zeevlinder	Sea butterfly
	See-Engel	Sea angel
	Mariposa marina	Sea butterfly
	Clione	Clione
	Papillon de mer	Sea butterfly
	Cavolinia	A different genus of sea butterfly

Notes

Pocket Camp fish

Fishing Fishing Tourney Locations Saltwater Shores Lost Lure Creek List of fish Achilles surgeonfish Amago salmon Amazon leaffish Amberjack Anchovy Angelfish Arapaima Arowana Atlantic mackerel Barbel steed Barred knifejaw Bering wolffish Betta Bitterling Black bass Black ghost knifefish Black rockfish Blowfish Bluegill Blue marlin Butterfly fish Carp Catfish Char Cherry salmon Clown fish Coelacanth Comb jelly Crawfish Crucian carp Dab Dace Dark-banded rockfish Darkfin pike eel Eel Firefly squid Flying fish Football fish Freshwater crab Freshwater goby Frilled shark Frog Frogfish Gar Giant king salmon Giant manta ray Giant river prawn Giant snakehead Giant trevally Golden trout Gold football fish Gold horse mackerel Gold olive flounder Gold tuna Gourami Harlequin shrimp Horse mackerel Horsehair crab Japanese halfbeak Killifish King catfish King dab King goliath frog King koi King olive flounder King red snapper King salmon King stringfish Koi Largehead hairtail Loach Longtooth grouper Mantis shrimp Megamouth shark Mitten crab Moorish idol Moray eel Napoleonfish Neon tetra Nomura's jellyfish Northern comb jelly Oarfish Ocean sunfish Octopus Olive flounder Ornate spiny lobster Pacific saury Pale chub Pelican eel Pike Pineapplefish Pond smelt Pop-eyed goldfish Puffer fish Rainbow trout Ray Red snapper Redtail catfish Ribbon eel Sailfin sandfish Sakura shrimp Salmon Sea bass Sea bunny Sea butterfly Sea horse Shark Silver pomfret Skipjack tuna Snapping turtle Snow crab Soft-shelled turtle Spider crab Spiny lobster Splendid alfonsino Splendid garden eel Spotted garden eel Spring mackerel Squid Stringfish Sturgeon Surgeonfish Sweetfish Sweet shrimp Tadpole Threadfin trevally Tiger catfish Tiger prawn Tilapia Tuna Vampire crab Whale shark White lumpfish Yellow perch Zebra turkeyfish List of Fishing Tourney-exclusive fish Amethyst jewelfish Aqua eggler fish Aquamarine jewelfish Atlantic horseshoe crab Barreleye Berry-chocolate fish Bicolor dottyback Bigfin reef squid Black clown fish Black horsehair crab Black ruby barb Black wakin goldfish Blackspot tuskfish Blooper Blue bewitched frog Blue flagonfish Blue moon jellyfish Blue starfish Blueberry-candy fish Chambered nautilus Cheep Cheep Cheep Chomp Cherry-candy fish Crystal red shrimp Dark-chocolate fish Diamond tetra Dorado Eep Cheep Fancy pastel arapaima Fancy pastel arowana Fancy pastel carp Flame angelfish Giant isopod Giant sparkly manta ray Giant squid Gold starfish Golden koi Goldfish Grape candy fish Great barracuda Great white shark Green bonefish Green boxfish Green discus Green lumpfish Green moon jellyfish Green Napoleonfish Green octopus Green spotted puffer Green squid Guppy Hammerhead shark Honey eel Honey sea horse Honey sea slug Horseshoe crab Icy butterfly fish Icy chambered nautilus Icy lobster Island Horse Mackerel Island olive flounder Island red snapper Island tuna Ivory arowana Lemon-candy fish Lemur-tail seahorse Lobster Longsnout seahorse Mahi-mahi Maple-leaf koi Melon candy fish Milk-chocolate fish Nebula starfish Opah Orange bewitched frog Orange bonefish Orange candy fish Orange discus Pacific cod Pink anemonefish Pink eggler fish Pink koi Pink squid Piranha Platinum black bass Platinum catfish Platinum gar Platinum pale chub Pot-bellied seahorse Purple bewitched frog Purple bonefish Purple festival fish Purple octopus Purple starfish Ranchu goldfish Red festival fish Red flagonfish Red garra Red king crab Red lionfish Red lumpfish Red sea bream Red snow crab Red wakin goldfish Ruby jewelfish Saddled bichir Saw shark Silver arowana Smalltooth sand tiger Sparkly jellyfish Sparkly whale shark Spotted knifejaw Threadfin butterflyfish Umbrella octopus Weedy stingfish White angelfish White butterfly koi White puffer fish White ribbon eel White starfish White tuxedo guppy Yellow boxfish Yellow eggler fish Yellow festival fish Yellow flagonfish Yellow king piranha Yellow moon jellyfish Yellow starfish Yellowfin tuna Zebra moray Project