[2] It is a native of the Indo-Pacific region, from the Red Sea and East Africa to the Hawaiian Islands and Samoa, north to southern Japan, south to Australia and New Caledonia.

[2] The sunburst butterflyfish is found at depths of 4–61 meters, usually in deeper lagoons and channels and seaward reefs, swimming singly, or (particularly during breeding) in pairs.

Its coral-eating habits can become a nuisance, but on the other hand, they are fond of Aiptasia, small sea anemones that often become a pest in seawater aquaria.

[3] The sunburst butterflyfish was first formally described in 1790 by the German naturalist and physician Marcus Elieser Bloch (1723–1799) with the type locality given as the East Indies (Ostindien).

[4] The specific name honours the German jurist, historian, botanist, zoologist and mathematician Jacob Theodor Klein (1685–1759) who illustrated this species in volume 4 of his 5-volume history of fishes, which drew Bloch's attention.