Redbarred hawkfish (Cirrhitops fasciatus)

Classification (WoRMS)

Full classification as recorded by WoRMS: Kingdom: Animalia · Phylum: Chordata · Class: Teleostei · Order: Centrarchiformes · Family: Cirrhitidae · Genus: Cirrhitops.

Accepted name: Cirrhitops fasciatus · Authority: (Bennett, 1828) · Taxonomic status: accepted · AphiaID: 218861.

Synonyms and superseded combinations recorded for this taxon: Cirrhites cinctus Günther, 1860; Cirrhites fasciatus Bennett, 1828; Paracirrhites cinctus (Günther, 1860).

Source: World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=218861 (CC BY 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Biology and life history (FishBase)

Measured values published by FishBase for Cirrhitops fasciatus. Only fields the database actually holds for this species are shown; these are database values, not aquarium guidance.

Maximum length: 12.699999809265137 cm · Depth range: 1–52 m · Habitat zone: reef-associated · Body shape: fusiform / normal · Vulnerability index: 10 of 100 · Fishery importance: commercial · Aquarium trade: commercial.

FishBase notes: Occurs on seaward reefs, in areas of moderate to rich coral growth. Typically at the bases of coral heads on hard bottoms (Ref. 9710). Benthic (Ref. 58302). Feeds about equally on small fishes, shrimps and crabs; to a lesser extent, on sipunculids and zooplankton (larval shrimps, copepods, amphipods and larval gastropods) (Ref. 3921).

Source: FishBase species summary (SpecCode 7792) — https://www.fishbase.se/summary/Cirrhitops-fasciatus.html (CC BY-NC 3.0 — non-commercial use only). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Distribution and occurrence records (GBIF)

2,652 georeferenced occurrence records for Cirrhitops fasciatus are published through GBIF from 9 countries or marine areas. The map above plots 51 distinct locations from a sample of 2,652 records, omitting 11 inland records that carry an institution's coordinates rather than a collection site; it shows where the species has been observed and reported, not a modelled range.

Most records by country or area: United States of America (2,417); United States Minor Outlying Islands (174); Réunion (43); French Polynesia (9); Mauritius (5).

The full country table, WoRMS marine regions and the sampling notes are on this species' Distribution page.

Source: GBIF Occurrence Search (taxonKey 2375117) — https://www.gbif.org/occurrence/search?taxon_key=2375117&has_coordinate=true (records CC0 / CC BY); WoRMS distribution records (MarineRegions) — https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=218861 (CC BY 4.0); Natural Earth 110m basemap — https://www.naturalearthdata.com/ (public domain). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Conservation status (IUCN Red List)

The IUCN Red List assesses Cirrhitops fasciatus (Bennett, 1828) as Least Concern (code LC). No trend, population estimate or threat analysis is given here, because none is available from this source without the Red List API; follow the source link for the full assessment, including its date.

Source: IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (taxon 67997694) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/67997694/0; GBIF IUCN Red List category endpoint (taxonKey 2375117) — https://api.gbif.org/v1/species/2375117/iucnRedListCategory. Accessed 2026-09-23.

Description and natural history (Wikipedia)

The redbarred hawkfish was first formally described in 1828 as Cirrhites fasciatus by the English naturalist Edward Turner Bennett with the type locality given as the Hawaiian Islands. In 1829 Georges Cuvier described a species with the same name with the type locality given as Puducherry in India which Albert Günther mistakenly thought predated Turner's description. Günther devised the new name Cirrhites cinctus to replace Turner's original name but Cuvier published his name a year after Bennett published, meaning Cuvier's name was invalid and Günther's replacement name unnecessary. Cirrhites was a common misspelling of Cirrfitus. In 1951 the South African ichthyologist J. L. B. Smith described the new genus Cirrhitops with Cirrhites fasciatus as the type species. When he described the genus Smith stated that it was monotypic. The species was known from the southwestern Indian Ocean and its type locality of Hawaii and no records came from between these places, Cuvier's locality of India for his name being an error. In 2008, in a paper co-authored by John Ernest Randall and Jennifer K. Schultz, a new species Cirrhitops mascarenensis was described from the south western Indian Ocean based on genetic and morphological analyses. This then resolved the status of the redbarred hawkfish as a species endemic to the Hawaiian archipelago. The specific name fasciatus means "banded", referring the four thick bands on the body.

The redbarred hawkfish has the higher 2 and lower 6 pectoral fin rays with no branching. There are 10 spines Nd 14, occasionally 15, soft rays in the dorsal fin the spines all have a tassel of cirri at their tip and moderate incisions on the membranes between them, except that there is a deep incision between the fifth and sixth spines. The roof of the mouth has a small number of small teeth. The upper three fifths of the margin of the preoperculum has large serrations, the rest of the margin of it is smooth. The dorsal profile of the snout is convex. The caudal fin is truncate and the pelvic fin extends past the anus. This species attains a maximum total length of 12.7 cm. The background colour of the head and body is whitish with reddish or brown vertical bands on the flanks and back and speckling on the face.

The redbarred hawkfish is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, records from Madagascar and the Mascerene Islands refer to Cirrhitops mascarenensis and the record from Japan is a misidentification. This species is found at depths between 1 and 52 m on a range of reef habitats and habitats associated with reefs.

The redbarred hawkfish is benthic. Like other hawkfishes it perches on corals and sponges to watch for prey which may be small fishes, and crustaceans, as well as a small amount of sipunculids and zooplankton such as larval shrimps, copepods, amphipods and larval gastropods.

The redbarred hawkfish is occasionally found in the aquarium trade.

Source: Wikipedia: Redbarred hawkfish — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redbarred_hawkfish (CC BY-SA 4.0). Accessed 2026-09-23.

Gallery