Fish use taste buds in the oropharyngeal cavity as well as across the body and fins to detect dissolved organic compounds in the surrounding environment. The abundance and distribution of taste buds varies across fishes and often reflects adaptations to a particular habitat or feeding behavior. Traditionally, extraoral taste buds have been thought to be found largely in species inhabiting benthic and/or turbid environments where vision is of limited use. To investigate this idea, we examine of the abundance and distribution patterns of taste buds across the pectoral and pelvic fins of damselfish. As diurnal predators, these fishes are thought to rely on vision during feeding. They inhabit shallow, clear and light‐rich waters of coral reef environments where the utility of extraoral taste buds has not been previously investigated. Using immunohistochemical techniques, we found pear-shaped receptors across the paired fins whose morphological characteristics and specificity to the calretinin antibody are consistent with those of taste buds identified previously in other species. Taste bud density was highest along fin margins and peaked (~200/mm²) at the distal tips of the elongated leading-edge pelvic fin rays. By mapping the full array of taste buds, we show variation in the distribution of taste buds likely reflecting differences in the functional demands for feeding across species and fins. Given the high receptor density on the paired fins of the species examined here, we suggest that damselfish fins play important chemosensory roles. These data also demonstrate that fishes inhabiting a myriad of habitats and environmental conditions utilize chemosensory feedback from taste buds outside the oral cavity.