Image 3-13
Freckled Hawkfish

This image of a freckled hawkfish (Paracirrhites forsteri) was captured by photographers from NOAA. The freckled hawkfish is one of the more colorful members of the hawkfish family. It is also sometimes called the Forster's hawkfish and the blackside hawkfish. This species lives on the coral reefs of the Indian and Pacific oceans. It grows to a maximum length of about 8 inches (20 centimeters) in the wild. Like most hawkfish species, it feeds mainly on crustaceans and other small invertebrates.