Lutjanus vivanus
A red snapper with a vivid yellow iris, found in the Western Atlantic.
The silk snapper (Lutjanus vivanus) goes by several common names, including West Indian snapper, yellow-eyed snapper, and yellow-eyed red snapper. It is a marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Lutjanidae, found in the Western Atlantic Ocean.
French zoologist Georges Cuvier first formally described this species in 1828, naming it *Mesoprion vivanus* based on a specimen from Martinique. The specific name *vivanus* comes from the local French terms *vivaneau* and *vivanet*, which may derive from *vivax*, meaning "lively."
The silk snapper has a moderately deep, oblong body that is laterally compressed, with a sharp snout. Its nostrils are simple holes, and its large mouth has a protruding upper jaw that slips under the cheek bone when closed. Each jaw contains one to two rows of conical teeth, with the front teeth enlarged into canines. On the roof of the mouth, the vomerine teeth form an anchor-shaped patch with a rearward extension, and there are tooth patches on each side. The preoperculum has a deep notch on its lower margin. The continuous dorsal fin has no incision, with 10 to 11 spines and 13 to 14 soft rays; the anal fin has 3 spines and 7 to 8 soft rays. Both fins are scaled. The pectoral fins are long, about equal to the head length in adults, and the caudal fin is emarginate. Overall color is red to pinkish-red, paler on the belly, with some individuals showing thin wavy yellow lines on the flanks. A key feature separating this species from similar snappers in the same area is its vivid yellow iris. The fins are reddish, with the anal and dorsal fins tinted yellow; the caudal fin has a dark margin, and the pectoral fins are light yellow. Juveniles have a black or red spot on the upper flanks just below the start of the dorsal fin.
This species ranges across the Western Atlantic, from North Carolina and Bermuda south through the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, reaching as far as São Paulo, Brazil, including Trindade Island. It lives at depths of 9 to 450 meters (30 to 1,476 feet), on the edges of continental and island shelves over sand, gravel, and coral substrates. Juveniles inhabit shallower waters than adults.
During the day, the silk snapper stays in deeper water, rising at night to hunt. It primarily preys on fish, but also eats crabs, isopods, octopus, and shrimp. Maximum longevity can reach 33 years.
Quick Facts
- Taxon
- Lutjanus vivanus
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
The silk snapper was first formally described in 1828 as Mesoprion vivanus by French zoologist Georges Cuvier, with the type locality given as Martinique. The specific name vivanus derives from vivaneau and vivanet, local French names on Martinique, possibly originating from vivax, meaning 'lively'. The species has a moderately deep body with a sharp snout, oblong and laterally compressed, and a large protrusible mouth with conical teeth, including enlarged canines at the front. Its vomerine teeth form an anchor-shaped patch, and there is a deep incision on the lower margin of the preoperculum. The dorsal fin is continuous with no incision, and both the dorsal and anal fins are scaled. The pectoral fins are elongate, roughly equal to head length in adults, and the caudal fin is emarginate. Overall color is red to pinkish-red, paler on the abdomen, with some individuals showing thin wavy yellow lines on the flank. The fins are reddish, with the anal and dorsal fins tinted yellow; the caudal fin has a dark margin, and the pectoral fins are light yellow. Juveniles have a black or red spot on the upper flanks just below the origin of the dorsal fin.
Reader's Guide
The silk snapper is a species of the Western Atlantic Ocean, occurring from North Carolina and Bermuda south through the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico to São Paulo, Brazil, including Trindade Island. It inhabits depths from 9 to 450 m on the edge of continental and island shelves over substrates of sand, gravel, and coral, with juveniles occupying shallower waters than adults. The species spends the day in deeper waters and ascends the water column at night to hunt, preying mainly on fish but also on crabs, isopods, octopus, and shrimp. It can live up to 33 years. Spawning occurs over much of the year in lower latitudes, but in spring and summer in more temperate parts of its range. Off Puerto Rico, males attain sexual maturity at 38 cm and females at 50 cm. The silk snapper is caught by commercial, artisanal, and recreational fisheries using traps, hook and line, and sometimes bottom trawls, notably as bycatch in shrimp fisheries in Mexico. There have been reports of ciguatera poisoning from consumption of its flesh.
Did You Know?
- The silk snapper was first described in 1828 by French zoologist Georges Cuvier.
- Its specific name vivanus may derive from vivax, meaning 'lively'.
- The species can live up to 33 years.
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