Common Name: Blackspot Snapper

Distribution: Common in the Solitary Islands Marine Park. Distributed throughout the Indo-Pacific region: East Africa, the Red Sea and Persian Gulf to Samoa, north to Ryukyu Islands, south to Australia. In Australia recorded from Geraldton in Western Australia, across the tropical north, including the Gulf of Carpentaria, the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, south to southern New South Wales and including Lord Howe Island.

Ecological Notes: Adults inhabit coral reefs and deep lagoons usually in schools. Juveniles found in estuaries or lower reaches of freshwater streams, mangrove areas. Depth to 35 m.

Additional Notes: Narrow yellow stripes of equal width mostly below lateral line, and rectangular black spot below mid dorsal fin. Juvenile Lutjanus russelli similar but has brown rather than yellow stripes, and stripes are distinctive above the lateral line. Feeds mainly on fishes, shrimps, crabs and other crustaceans. May be found with schools of Lutjanus kasmira and Lutjanus lutjanus. Juvenile approximately 10 cm long pictured at top. Grows to 35 cm. 

References: R. Stuart-Smith, G. Edgar, A. Green, I. Shaw, Tropical Marine Fishes of Australia. Reed New Holland Publishers, 2015. p.152.

Atlas of Living Australia website at https://bie.ala.org.au/search?q=lutjanus+fulviflamma. Accessed 04/06/18.

FishBase. Froese, R. and D. Pauly. Editors. 2018. World Wide Web electronic publication. https://fishbase.ca/summary/Lutjanus-fulviflamma.html. Accessed 04/06/18.