Spotted Hawkfish, Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus (Bleeker 1855)

Other Names: Pixy Hawkfish, Sharp-headed Hawkfish

A Spotted Hawkfish, Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus, at Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Queensland. Source: Graham Edgar / Reef Life Survey. License: CC By Attribution

Summary:

A whitish to pinkish hawkfish with large reddish-brown to greyish or bright reddish-orange blotches or spots on the head and body, a row of smaller blotches along the lateral line, large spots on the spinous dorsal fin including blotches along the fin base, and spotted soft dorsal and caudal fins.

Cite this page as:

Bray, D.J. 2025, Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus in Fishes of Australia, accessed 13 Jul 2026, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/437

Spotted Hawkfish, Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus (Bleeker 1855)

More Info

Distribution	Shark Bay, Western Australia, to south of Evans Shoal, Arafura Sea, Northern Territory, including Ashmore Reef in the Timor Sea, and the northern Great Barrier Reef, Queensland, and reefs in the Coral Sea, to Sydney, New South Wales; also Cocos (Keeling) Islands and Christmas Island in the eastern Indian Ocean. Elsewhere, the species occurs in the tropical, Indo-Pacific. Inhabits areas of rich coral growth in lagoon, channel, or seaward reefs from below the surge zone to about 40 m - usually on hard corals.
Features	Dorsal fin X, 12-13, first soft ray elongate in larger individuals; Anal fin III, 6; Pectoral fin 14, lower 6 rays unbranched; Gill rakers 4-6 + 10; Lateral-line scales 40-45, scale rows above lateral line 3. Body depth 2.8-3.4 in SL; bony interorbital space ~½ eye diameter; maxilla extending behind vertical at front edge of eye; palatine teeth present; rear margin of preopercle coarsely serrated.
Size
Biology	Most likely a protogynous hermaphrodite, living in haremic groups, with a solitary male dominating a small group of females. Spawning occurs in the water column.
Species Citation	Cirrhites oxycephalus Bleeker 1855, Natuurwetenschappelijk Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch Indië 8: 408. Type locality: Ambon, Indonesia.
Author	Bray, D.J. 2025
Resources	Atlas of Living Australia Australian Faunal Directory Catalog of Fishes

Spotted Hawkfish, Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus (Bleeker 1855)

References

Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp.

Allen, G.R., Steene, R.C. & Orchard, M. 2007. Fishes of Christmas Island. Christmas Island : Christmas Island Natural History Association 2 edn, 284 pp.

Allen, G.R. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 1994. Fishes of Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Atoll Research Bulletin 412: 1-21.

Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls.

Bleeker, P. 1855. Zesde bijdrage tot de kennis der ichthyologische fauna van Amboina. Natuurwetenschappelijk Tijdschrift voor Nederlandsch Indië 8: 391-434. See ref at BHL

Bleeker, P. 1877. Atlas Ichthyologique des Indes Orientales Néerlandaises, publié sous les auspices du Gouvernement colonial néerlandais. Tome 8. Percoides II, (Spariformes), Bogodoides, Cirrhitéoides. Amsterdam : Fréd. Müller 156 pp. pls 321-354, 361-362. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0138136

Donaldson, T.J. 1987. Social organization and reproductive behavior of the hawkfish Cirrhitichthys falco (Cirrhitidae). Bulletin of Marine Science 41: 531-540. PDF (open access)

Gaither, M.R. & Randall, J.E. 2012. On the validity of the cirrhitid fish genus Itycirrhitus. aqua, International Journal of Ichthyology 18(4): 219-226.
Hutchins, J.B. & Swainston, R. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete field guide for anglers and divers. Perth : Swainston Publishing 180 pp.

Greenfield, D. & Williams, I. 2016. Cirrhitichthys oxycephalus (errata version published in 2017). The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T67997668A115451295. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-1.RLTS.T67997668A68001661.en. Accessed on 21 July 2025.

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3)

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp.

Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. A comprehensive reference for divers and fishermen. Sydney, NSW, Australia : New Holland Publishers xvii, 434 pp.

Larson, H.K., Williams, R.S. & Hammer, M.P. 2013. An annotated checklist of the fishes of the Northern Territory, Australia. Zootaxa 3696(1): 1-293.

Randall, J.E. 1963. Review of the hawkfishes (family Cirrhitidae). Proceedings of the United States National Museum 114(3472): 389-451.

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press 707 pp.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs.

Russell, B.C. 1983. Annotated checklist of the coral reef fishes in the Capricorn-Bunker group, Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Special Publication Series 1: 1-184 figs 1-2

Sadovy, Y. & Donaldson, T.J. 1995. Sexual pattern of Neocirrhites armatus (Cirrhitidae) with notes on other hawkfish species. Environmental Biology of Fishes 42(2): 143-150. Abstract