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Lyre-tail Hawkfish
Cyprinocirrhites polyactis Bleeker, 1875
A Lyre-tail Hawkfish at a depth of 21 m, North Solitary Island, New South Wales, January, 2001. Photo © I. Shaw. View larger image.
A Lyre-tail Hawkfish at a depth of 16 m, North Solitary Island, New South Wales, November 2005. Photo © D. Harasti. View larger image.
The Lyre-tail Hawkfish has numerous short filaments at the tip of each dorsal spine. It has a greatly elongated first dorsal ray (in the middle of the dorsal fin), long lower pectoral rays and a lunate caudal fin with filamentous upper an lower rays. Its colour varies from pink to brown.
This species grows to 15 cm in length.
The Lyre-tail Hawkfish occurs in tropical and warm temperate marine waters of the Indo-West Pacific.
In Australia it is known from Western Australia and from the Great Barrier Reef, Queensland to southern New South Wales.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
Most Australian species of hawkfishes are usually seen on the bottom. The Lyre-tail Hawkfish is atypical because it is often seen well off the bottom feeding on zooplankton.
It differs from the other Australian species of hawkfishes by its shorter snout and lunate caudal fin. Lyre-tail Hawkfish resembles the tropical fairy basslets in looks and behaviour, but can be distinguished by the long first dorsal ray that projects from the middle of the dorsal fin.
Further reading
- Allen, G.R. & R. Swainston. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Western Australian Museum. Pp. 201.
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Myers, R.F. 1999. Micronesian Reef Fishes. Coral Graphics. Pp. 330.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
