Arc-eye hawkfish
Paracirrhites arcatus
Swallowtail hawkfish
Cyprinocirrhites polyactis
About
The swallowtail hawkfish is a small reef fish, growing to about 15 cm, that breaks the mould for its family by hovering in open water instead of sitting still on the reef.
Also known as: swallowtail hawkfish, swallowtail hawfish, swallowtail hawfish, lyretail hawkfish, lyretail hawkfish, swallowtail hawkfish
- Length
- 15 cm
- Depth
- up to 132 m
How to tell it apart
Every other hawkfish sits on the bottom and has a rounded or squared-off tail; this one hovers over the reef and shows a deeply forked tail with streamer tips instead.
Appearance
The body is orange to brownish-orange, often mottled with orange-red or brownish blotches, and juveniles are a brighter orange-gold. Its most striking feature is a deeply forked tail, with the top and bottom rays drawn out into long streamers, and the first ray of the dorsal fin is also stretched out longer than the rest.
Habitat
This species lives on tropical reefs across the Indo-Pacific, from East Africa through the Indian Ocean to Japan, Australia, and the western Pacific. It favours steep reef slopes and small coral heads exposed to current, sometimes near sponges, at depths from 10 to 132 m.
Behaviour
Most hawkfish perch on the bottom, but the swallowtail hawkfish hovers several metres above the reef instead. From there it picks off drifting crustaceans, copepods, and other tiny plankton as they pass. It may change sex over its life, though this has not yet been confirmed.
Did you know?
The swallowtail hawkfish is the only known species in its genus, Cyprinocirrhites.
Log it in Into the Blue
Describe what you saw and we name it, then keep every species you find in your Oceandex.
