Cirrhitichthys fasciatus

Lore & Background

The redspotted hawkfish was first formally described as Pseudocirrhites pinos in 1927 by Bermudan naturalist Louis L. Mowbray, with the type locality given as Point Francis on the Isle of Pines in Cuba. In 1829, French zoologist Georges Cuvier described a species he called Cirrhites fasciatus, giving it a type locality of Puducherry in India, but this is now considered an error, as the fish most likely came from the Atlantic Ocean. When Theodore Nicholas Gill described the genus Amblycirrhitus in 1861, he used Cuvier's C. fasciatus as its type species, but Cuvier's name was preoccupied by Edward Turner Bennett's 1828 usage for a related species, making A. pinos the type species under Cuvier's invalid name. Mowbray's specific name pinos refers to the Isle of Pines.

The redspotted hawkfish has an oval, moderately compressed body with a short, sharp snout and a fringe of cirri on the posterior margin of the anterior nostril. It has a moderately large mouth with small canine-like teeth on the outside of the jaws and a band of simple teeth inside. The dorsal fin is continuous with a small incision between the spiny and soft-rayed parts, and each spine has a tuft of cirri at its tip. The caudal fin is truncate, and the lower pectoral fin rays are robust and notably longer than the others. The fish has an overall whitish background color with several brownish vertical bands, a dark brown caudal peduncle, and numerous red spots on the head and adjacent body.

The redspotted hawkfish is found in the western Atlantic Ocean at depths shallower than 46 m, common in rocky areas and rubble, and frequently occupies crevices and small caves. Its habitat includes Bermuda, the Bahamas, the Florida Keys, Cedar Key off Florida, the Flower Garden Banks in the Gulf of Mexico, and areas from Tuxpan, Mexico along the northern Yucatan Peninsula to northwestern Cuba. It also occurs throughout the Caribbean, including Isla de Aves, and along the South American coast as far as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, as well as at Trindade Island.

Reader's Guide

The redspotted hawkfish is a benthic fish that normally rests on the marine substrate, using its pectoral fins to secure itself against the current and often taking sanctuary in the lumen of tube sponges. Like other hawkfishes, it hunts by sight, ambushing prey from its station. Its diet mainly consists of small crustaceans such as copepods, shrimps and shrimp larvae, crabs and crab larvae, but it will also prey on polychaetes. It is a pelagic spawner, though little is known about its reproduction. The species is collected for the aquarium trade, which contributes to its significance as a commonly encountered fish in marine aquaria. Its distinctive red-spotted pattern and relatively small size make it a notable member of the Cirrhitidae family in the Western Atlantic.

Did You Know?

• The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 11 soft rays, with each spine bearing a tuft of cirri at its tip.
• It attains a maximum standard length of 9.5 cm (3.7 in).