Name: Blackspot Snapper
Local name: Neisra
Scientific name: Lutjanus fulviflamma
Classification: Class: ray-finned fishes; Order: perch-likes; Family: snappers (Lutjanidae)
Size: It commonly attains 25 cm in total length, with a maximum length of 35 cm.
Habitat:
This is by far the most common snapper in the Arabian Gulf. Adults occur in schools of varying size in coral areas. They feed mainly on fish, shrimps, and other crustaceans. Juveniles are sometimes found in mangrove areas.
Distribution:
This species is widespread in the tropical Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and the east coast of Africa, east to Samoa, north to Japan, and south to Australia.
Conservation status:
It has not yet been assessed globally by the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In a recent regional assessment for the Arabian Gulf it was classified as Least Concern (LC). The Blackspot Snapper is mainly caught by handlines, traps and gillnets. It is very common in markets.
Description:
The body is oblong and moderately compressed. The mouth is large and terminal. The posterior margin of the dorsal and anal fins is rounded to somewhat angular. The caudal fin is emarginated. Head and body are greenish to grey dorsally, silvery white on the flanks and ventrally, with about six narrow yellow stripes and a large oval black spot on the anterior part of the lateral line. The fins are yellowish.
