Robust yellowish to orange-brown body with rounded snout. Lack of distinctive markings, except for a small dark patch on dorsal fin at tip of second dorsal spine, dorsal spines with fin tassels. Behaviour also distinctive - unlike other hawkfishes, this species is often seen above the bottom in the water column, actively swimming and unable to maintain neutral buoyancy. Length to 15 cm.

• Max Size: 15 cm
• Sea Temperature Range: 19.4-30.2°C
• Depth: 10-132 m
• Habitat: Coral Reef, Rocky Reef

• IUCN Threat Status: Not Evaluated
• Occurrence: Infrequent (3% of sites)
  Occurrence describes how often the species is found on surveys within its distribution. It is calculated as the % of reef sites surveyed by RLS divers across all the ecoregions in which the species has been observed
• Abundance: Few (4 per transect)
  Abundance is calculated as the average number of individuals recorded per RLS transect, where present.