Scientific Name
Lutjanus jocu

Common Name
Dog snapper

Biology
Adults common around rocky or coral reefs. Young found in estuaries and occasionally enters rivers. Feeds mainly on fishes and benthic invertebrates, including shrimps, crabs, gastropods and cephalopods.

Classification

Classified By

Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Class

Ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii)

Order

Perch-like fish (Perciformes)

Family

Snappers (Lutjanidae)

Distribution

Region

Western Atlantic

Distribution

Western Atlantic: Massachusetts, USA to S?o Paulo, Brazil (Ref. 57756), including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea (Ref. 9626). Eastern Atlantic: St. Paul's Rocks and Ascension Island (Ref. 13121), Tinhosa Grande, south of Pr?ncipe Island (L.A. Pereira (pers. comm.).

Range

42°N - 9°S, 99°W - 10°W

Environment

Climate

Subtropical

Water Temperature From

Unknown °C

Water Temperature To

Unknown °C

Depth From - meters

2 m

Depth To - meters

40 m

Zone

reef-associated

Environment

Marine; freshwater; brackish; reef-associated; depth range 2 - 40 m (Ref. 58047), usually 5 - 30 m (Ref. 9710)

Trophic Level

4.3 s.e. 0.75 Based on diet studies.

Occurs in Marine / Salt water

True

Occurs in Brackish water

True

Occurs in Fresh Water

True

Occurs on Reefs

True

Is kept in Aquariums

True

Physical Size and Genetics

Maximum Length

128 cm

Common Length

60.0 cm

Phylogenetic Diversity Index

PD50 = 0.5000 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Human Uses and Population

Human Uses

Fisheries: commercial; aquarium: public aquariums

Vulnerability

High to very high vulnerability (66 of 100)

Resilience

Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.10; tm=5.5)

Threat To Humans

Reports of ciguatera poisoning (Ref. 55)

IUCN Red List Status

Not Evaluated