Species: Lutjanus aratus, Mullet snapper
Lutjanus aratus (Günther, 1864)
Mullet snapper
Body elongate; front and rear nostrils simple holes; mouth relatively large and protractile; teeth conical to caniniform, those at front of jaws generally enlarged and fang-like; tooth patch at central roof of mouth V-shaped or crescentic, without a rear extension; sides of roof of mouth with 1 tooth patch; 16-17 gill rakers; preopercle serrated, lower margin notched; dorsal rays XI-XII, 12, fin continuous; anal rays III, 7-8; soft dorsal and anal with rounded ends; tail edge concave; bases of soft dorsal and anal fins scaly; scale rows on upper back parallel to lateral line.
Grey to greenish, darker on back; centre of each scale yellowish white forming alternating dark and light stripes on side; fins grey; fish from deeper water sometimes reddish, with red fins.
Size: reaches about 100 cm and at least 15kg
Habitat: juveniles found in coastal embayments and estuaries, adults range into clear, deep waters and sometimes form large aggregations in midwater over rocky bottoms.
Depth: 0-50 m.
Southern Baja California to the central Gulf of California to northern Peru, including Cocos the Galapagos and Malpelo.
High Resolution Map Download
- Salinity
-
- Marine
- Brackish
- Inshore/Offshore
-
- Inshore
- Inshore Only
- Water Column Position
-
- Bottom + water column
- Mid Water
- Near Bottom
- Bottom
- Habitat
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- Rocks
- Estuary
- Water column
- Reef (rock/coral/oyster)
- Reef and soft bottom
- Reef associated (reef + edges-water column & soft bottom)
- Soft bottom (mud/sand/gravel/beach/estuary/mangrove/seagrass)
- FishBase Habitat
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- Reef Associated
- Feeding Group
-
- Data
- Carnivore
- Diet
-
- Data
- Mobile benthic crustacea (shrimps/crabs)
- Bony fishes
- Octopus/squid/cuttlefish
- Egg Type
-
- Pelagic
- No data
- Pelagic larva
- Global Endemism
-
- East Pacific endemic
- Tropical Eastern Pacific (TEP) endemic
- All species
- Regional Endemism
-
- All species
- TEP endemic
- Continent
- Continent + Island (s)
- Island (s)
- Residency
-
- Resident
- Climate Zone
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- Northern Tropical (Mexican Province to Nicaragua + Revillagigedos)
- Equatorial (Costa Rica to Ecuador + Galapagos, Clipperton, Cocos, Malpelo)
- Northern Subtropical (Cortez Province + Sinaloan Gap)
- IUCN Red List
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- Least concern
- Listed
- CITES
-
- Not listed
- Length Max
-
- 100
- Depth Range Min
-
- 0
- Depth Range Max
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- 50
