[3] It is native to the Indian Ocean, the eastern Atlantic, and the western Pacific, except for the seas around Hawaii, where it is replaced by Cantherhines sandwichiensis.

The dorsal fin is divided into two parts, the anterior one having two long, curved spines and the posterior one thirty-two to thirty-six soft rays.

[4] There is a prominent white spot at the base of the rear of the second dorsal fin and another at the base of the rear of the anal fins, a feature this species shares with the closely related C. pullus, found on tropical Atlantic reefs, and C. sandwichiensis from Hawaii.

It is a shy and retiring fish, usually living solitarily and feeding on benthic organisms.

Both juveniles and adults sometimes drift with plants and algae, including rafts of Sargassum.