Read the article with FishingTheSpot: the silk snapper
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See the fishing tripsThe Silk Snapper
late spring till summer
30 cm
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The Silk Snapper belongs to the Lutjanidae family. It can reach a maximum of 83 cm in length and 8.3 kg in weight. They can live up to 30 years. The spawning season can last all year round. The fishing season for silk snapper is from late spring to summer.
Silk snappers have an elongated compressed bodies. They are generally red to pinkish red and lighter on the belly. Some fish have thin undulating yellow lines on their sides. A key to identification is the iris of their eyes, which is bright yellow. Their fins are reddish, with yellow reflections on the anal and dorsal fins. Their caudal fin has a dark border and their pectoral fins reach the anus and are pale yellow. Juveniles have black or dark red spots on their upper sides, just below the front edge of their dorsal fin. They have a large mouth equipped with one or more rows of pointed conical teeth on both jaws. Their canines are much larger on the upper jaw. They have an anchor-shaped tooth patch, with a rear extension, on the roof of their mouth and a pair of dental patches on the sides of the roof of their mouth. They have sawtooth caps. Their anal fins have pointed tips, 3 spines and 7 or 8 rays; their caudal fin is lunar; their dorsal fin is continuous with 10 or 11 spines and 13 or 14 rays. They have 16 or 17 lower branches. Their bodies are covered with rough scales and the rows of ladders on their backs are oblique above the lateral line.
The Silk Snapper lifestyle
They mainly eat fish but supplement their diet with crabs, isopods, octopus and shrimp.
The Silk Snapper reaches sexual maturity at the age of 2 years age. Like other snappers, they are protogynous hermaphrodites. Fish born as a female and turns into a male when mature. Female snappers produce an average of 108,000 eggs per year.
The Silk Snapper habitat
The silk snapper occurs in the waters of the western Atlantic as far south as Cape Hatteras, North Carolina and Bermuda, and as far south as Brazil. They are also found in the Gulf of Mexico along the continental shelf.
Silk Snappers live in deep water and are found along continental and island shelves on sand, gravel and coral bottoms at depths between 39 and 390 meters. Juveniles lives in shallower waters than adults.
The Silk Snapper angling
Silk snappers are captured using a hook and line or traps.
