Queen Snapper

Etelis oculatus

Credit: Illustration by Diane Rome Peebles

Family Lutjanidae

Description: color of back and upper sides red, lower sides; silvery body long and slender; dorsal fin distinctly notched; large eyes; caudal fin deeply forked; no dark lateral spot

Similar fish: other snappers

Where found: offshore over rocky reefs of the continental shelf to 450 feet; young suspend at mid-depths

Size: small species, usually less than 20 inches

Remarks: little is known, but it is reported that adults live at depths greater than 400 feet