Tang's snapper

Lore & Background

Tang's snapper was first formally described in 1970 as Tangia carnolabrum by Chan William Lai-Yee, with the type locality in the South China Sea about 145 km southeast of Hong Kong at a depth of 110 to 130 m. The genus name Tangia was found to be preoccupied by a genus of leafhoppers, so in 1977 a new genus name Lipocheilus was coined by William D. Anderson Jr., Purnesh Kumar Talwar and G. David Johnson. The name Lipocheilus is a compound of lipos meaning 'fat' and cheilos meaning 'lip', referring to the fleshy knob on the upper lip; the specific name carnolabrum means 'fleshy lips' for a similar reason. This species is the only known member of its genus.

The species has a body about 40% as deep as its standard length, a large mouth with a protruding upper jaw, and adults have a thick, fleshy knob on the front of the upper lip. The space between the eyes can be flat or convex. It has palatine and vomerine teeth, with the vomerine teeth arranged in a V-shaped patch. The caudal fin is moderately forked. The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 10 soft rays, the anal fin has 3 spines and 8 soft rays, and neither fin has scales. The rearmost soft rays in the dorsal and anal fins are not produced. The pectoral fins are long, extending past the anus. The upper part of the head and body are brown with yellowish or pinkish flanks and a silvery sheen on the underside.

Tang's snapper has a wide Indo-West Pacific distribution but has been recorded from only a few localities, including the Ryukyu Islands, the South China Sea, the Andaman Sea, the northwestern Arabian Sea, the Lakshadweep Islands, Sri Lanka, Vanuatu, northern Australia, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands. It is a demersal species occurring over rocky bottoms and rocky reefs on the continental shelf at depths between 90 and 340 m. It is probably a predator of fishes and larger invertebrates, and is a characteristic component of fish assemblages at depths greater than 200 m in offshore waters.

Reader's Guide

Tang's snapper is a commercially important species as a food fish, targeted by long-line fisheries, especially on the continental shelf off southern China. In Papua New Guinea, it is commercially important despite not being directly targeted by fisheries. It was formerly caught as bycatch in the Western Deepwater Trawl Fishery in Australia, though as of 2016 this was not an active fishery. It is caught using handlines, longlines, and bottom trawls. Its significance lies in its status as the only known member of its genus, Lipocheilus, which was established in 1977 after the original genus name Tangia was found to be preoccupied. The species' distinctive fleshy lip knob is reflected in both its genus and species names. Despite its wide Indo-West Pacific distribution, it has been recorded from only a few localities, making it a relatively uncommon but valued catch in deepwater fisheries. Its habitat on rocky bottoms and reefs at depths from 90 to 340 m, and its role as a predator of fishes and larger invertebrates, contribute to its ecological niche in offshore waters deeper than 200 m.

Did You Know?

• It was first described in 1970 as Tangia carnolabrum, but the genus name was later changed because it was already used for a leafhopper.
• The species has a thick, fleshy knob on the front of the upper lip, referenced in both its genus and species names.
• It grows to a maximum total length of 60 cm (24 in) and is found at depths from 90 to 340 m.