Giant hawkfish
Encyclopedia
Giant Hawkfish, Cirrhitus rivulatus is a subspecies of hawkfish
. It is a marine fish
and remains the largest of the Hawkfish family, scoring in a maximum size of 60 cm (22 in). It is known for its social behavior towards scuba divers and its uncanny ability to perch on its pectoral fins. This particular species can be found mainly along the Sea of Cortez, at the Gulf of California reaching as far as northern Colombia
and the Galapagos Islands
. It is a predator mostly feeding on other small fish and crustaceans.
enthusiasts diving along the Pacific coasts of Mexico
. Usually remaining motionless it inhabits large boulders and rocky outcroppings at offshore islands including Isla San Pedro Nolasco near San Carlos, and Isla Tiburón near Bahía Kino
. Mainly occupying shallow waters not unfamiliar to high wave activity, like other hawkfishes it has a reputation for being able to perch on one of their pectoral fins, and sometimes both, perhaps obtaining its name from this. It has displayed the ability to stand up completely on its tail fin observed in aquaria. In the ocean, their pectoral fins serve a more a valuable purpose other than for swimming, it being strong enough to lock themselves in between rocks that are subject to wave surge. It is not uncommon to anglers around their native region and is known to be a game fish
.
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Hawkfish
Hawkfish are strictly tropical, perciform marine fish of the family Cirrhitidae. Associated with the coral reefs of the western and eastern Atlantic and Indo-Pacific, the hawkfish family contains 12 genera and 32 species. They share many morphological features with the scorpionfish of the family...
. It is a marine fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
and remains the largest of the Hawkfish family, scoring in a maximum size of 60 cm (22 in). It is known for its social behavior towards scuba divers and its uncanny ability to perch on its pectoral fins. This particular species can be found mainly along the Sea of Cortez, at the Gulf of California reaching as far as northern Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
and the Galapagos Islands
Galápagos Islands
The Galápagos Islands are an archipelago of volcanic islands distributed around the equator in the Pacific Ocean, west of continental Ecuador, of which they are a part.The Galápagos Islands and its surrounding waters form an Ecuadorian province, a national park, and a...
. It is a predator mostly feeding on other small fish and crustaceans.
Observation
The Giant hawkfish has a unique body design mostly deep and compressed, with a mainly olive skin tone sporting golden stripes or bars. It is a favorite fish to observe amongst scuba divingScuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
enthusiasts diving along the Pacific coasts of Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
. Usually remaining motionless it inhabits large boulders and rocky outcroppings at offshore islands including Isla San Pedro Nolasco near San Carlos, and Isla Tiburón near Bahía Kino
Bahía Kino
Bahía Kino is a town in the Mexican state of Sonora, on the Sea of Cortez Gulf of California; it was named after Eusebio Kino. The name also applies to the adjacent bay between Tiburón Island and Punta San Nicolás, Sonora...
. Mainly occupying shallow waters not unfamiliar to high wave activity, like other hawkfishes it has a reputation for being able to perch on one of their pectoral fins, and sometimes both, perhaps obtaining its name from this. It has displayed the ability to stand up completely on its tail fin observed in aquaria. In the ocean, their pectoral fins serve a more a valuable purpose other than for swimming, it being strong enough to lock themselves in between rocks that are subject to wave surge. It is not uncommon to anglers around their native region and is known to be a game fish
Game fish
Game fish are fish pursued for sport by recreational anglers. They can be freshwater or marine fish. Game fish can be eaten after being caught, though increasingly anglers practise catch and release to improve fish populations. Some game fish are also targeted commercially, particularly...
.
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