Indo-Pacific: East Africa to the Hawaiian, Marquesan, and Ducie islands, north to southern Japan, south to Australia and the Austral Islands; throughout Micronesia.

Body is red with silvery red stripes overlaid with blue iridescence; spinous portion of dorsal fin red with white-tipped spines and a white blotch in the middle of each membrane; leading edges of pelvic and anal spines white. maxilla extending posteriorly from center of eye to below rear edge of the pupil, premaxillary groove usually reaching to a vertical at front edge of the orbit; anterior end of nasal bone with 2 short diverging spines; medial margin of nasal bone spineless; large nasal fossa without spinules on margin; slight ridge along the upper edge of suborbital bones with low recumbent spinules in young, becoming smooth in adults, at least below the anterior half of orbit; opercle with 2 large subequal opercular spines.

Occurs along exposed reef margins and outer reef slopes. Has been observed at depth of 183 m in Hawaii.