Moses' Snapper, Lutjanus russellii (Bleeker 1849)


Other Names: Fingermark Bream, Moses Perch, Moses Seaperch, Moses Sea-perch, Moses Snapper, Red Bream, Russell's Sea-perch, Russell's Snapper

Moses' Snapper, Lutjanus russellii, at South Solitary Island, New South Wales. Source: Ian V. Shaw / Reef Life Survey. License: CC by Attribution

Summary:
A whitish to silvery greyish-pink tropical snapper with a brownish back, a diffuse black spot (sometimes faint) on the lateral line below the anterior part of the soft dorsal fin. Juveniles (usually <5 cm SL) are white with four (sometimes broken) brown to blackish stripes along the side, and a horizontally-elongate black spot or ocellus on the lateral line.
The scale rows along the back rise obliquely above the lateral line.

Cite this page as:
Bray, D.J. 2020, Lutjanus russellii in Fishes of Australia, accessed 29 Mar 2024, https://fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/566

Moses' Snapper, Lutjanus russellii (Bleeker 1849)

More Info


Distribution

Shark Bay and offshore reefs of Western Australia, and Ashmore Reef, Timor Sea, to Wollongong and possibly south to Jervis Bay, New South Wales. Elsewhere the species occurs in the tropical Indo-west Pacific.
Inhabits coastal and offshore reefs and rocky areas, occasionally entering estuaries. Juveniles prefer mangrove estuaries and may enter the lower freshwater reaches of streams.

Features

Dorsal fin X, 14; Anal fin III, 8; Pectoral fin 16-17; Gill rakers 6-7 + 7-11; Lateral-line scales 47-50. 

Body depth 2.6-2.8 in SL; dorsal profile of head steeply to moderately sloped. Preorbital width about equal to, or slightly less than eye diameter; preopercular notch and knob poorly developed; vomerine tooth patch triangular or diamond-shaped with median posterior extension. Scale rows on back rising obliquely above lateral line.

Feeding

Feeds on benthic invertebrates and fishes.

Fisheries

Moses' Snapper is taken by commercial and recreational fishers throughout its range, and is also extensively aquacultured.

Species Citation

Mesoprion russellii Bleeker 1849, Verhandelingen van het Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen 22: 41. Type locality: Malay-Moluccan Archipelago.

Author

Bray, D.J. 2020

Resources

Atlas of Living Australia

Moses' Snapper, Lutjanus russellii (Bleeker 1849)

References


Allan, R. 2002. Australian Fish and How to Catch Them. Sydney : New Holland Publishers (Australia) 394 pp. 

Allen, G.R. 1985. FAO Species Catalogue. Snappers of the World. An annotated and illustrated catalogue of lutjanid species known to date. FAO Fisheries Synopsis No. 125, Vol. 6. Rome : FAO 208 pp. 

Allen, G.R. 1997. Marine Fishes of Tropical Australia and South-east Asia. Perth : Western Australian Museum 292 pp. 106 pls. 

Allen, G.R. & Erdmann, M.V. 2012. Reef fishes of the East Indies. Perth : Tropical Reef Research 3 vols, 1260 pp. (in part)

Allen, G.R. & Swainston, R. 1988. The Marine Fishes of North-Western Australia. A field guide for anglers and divers. Perth, WA : Western Australian Museum vi 201 pp., 70 pls. 

Allen, G.R. & Talbot, F.H. 1985. Review of the snappers of the genus Lutjanus (Pisces: Lutjanidae) from the Indo-Pacific, with the description of a new species. Indo-Pacific Fishes 11: 1-87 

Allen, G.R., White, W.T. & Erdmann, M.V. 2013. Two new species of snappers (Pisces: Lutjanidae: Lutjanus) from the Indo-West Pacific. Journal of the Ocean Science Foundation 6: 33-51. http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.1036813Open access

Anderson, W.D. & Allen, G.R. 2001. Lutjanidae. pp. 2840-2918 in Carpenter, K.E. & Niem, V.H. (eds). The Living Marine Resources of the Western Central Pacific. FAO Species Identification Guide for Fisheries Purposes. Rome : FAO Vol. 5 2791-3379 pp. 

Blaber, S.J.M., Young, J.W. & Dunning, M.C. 1985. Community structure and zoogeographic affinities of the coastal fishes of the Dampier region of north-western Australia. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 36: 247-266.

Bleeker, P. 1849. Bijdrage tot de kennis der Percoïden van den Malayo-Molukschen Archipel, met beschrijving van 22 nieuwe soorten. Verhandelingen van het Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen 22: 1-64 

Coleman, N. 1981. Australian Sea Fishes North of 30°S. Lane Cove, NSW : Doubleday Australia Pty Ltd 297 pp. 

Grant, E.M. 1975. i Brisbane : Queensland Government, Co-ordinator General’s Department 640 pp. 

Grant, E.M. 1991. Fishes of Australia. Brisbane : EM Grant Pty Ltd 480 pp. 

Hitchcock, G., Finn, M.A., Burrows, D.W. & Johnson, J.W. 2012. Fishes from fresh and brackish waters of islands in Torres Strait, far north Queensland. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 56(1): 14-24 

Hutchins, J.B. 2001. Biodiversity of shallow reef fish assemblages in Western Australia using a rapid censusing technique. Records of the Western Australian Museum 20: 247-270 

Johannes, R.E. & MacFarlane, J.W. 1991. Traditional fishing in the Torres Strait Islands. CSIRO Division of Fisheries, Hobart, Tasmania 268 pp.

Johnson, J.W. 1999. Annotated checklist of the fishes of Moreton Bay, Queensland, Australia. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 43(2): 709-762. Ref at BHL

Johnson, J.W. 2010. Fishes of the Moreton Bay Marine Park and adjacent continental shelf waters, Queensland, Australia. pp. 299-353 in Davie, P.J.F. & Phillips, J.A. Proceedings of the Thirteenth International Marine Biological Workshop, The Marine Fauna and Flora of Moreton Bay. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 54(3) 

Johnson, J.W. & Gill, A.C. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of Sweers Island, Gulf of Carpentaria. Gulf of Carpentaria Scientific Study Report. Geography Monograph Series. Brisbane: Royal Geographic Society of Queensland. pp. 239-260 

Kuiter, R.H. 1993. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 437 pp. 

Laprise, R. & Blaber, S.J.M. 1991. Predation by Moses perch, Lutjanus russelli, and blue-spotted trevally, Caranx bucculentus, on juvenile brown tiger prawn, Penaeus esculentus: effects of habitat structure and time of day. Journal of Fish Biology 40(4): 627–635. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1992.tb02610.x


Larson, H.K. & Williams, R.S. 1997. Darwin Harbour fishes: a survey and annotated checklist. pp. 339-380 in Hanley, H.R., Caswell, G., Megirian, D. & Larson, H.K. (eds). The Marine Flora and Fauna of Darwin Harbour, Northern Territory, Australia. Proceedings of the Sixth International Marine Biology Workshop. Darwin : Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory 466 pp. 

Larson, H.K., Williams, R.S. & Hammer, M.P. 2013. An annotated checklist of the fishes of the Northern Territory, Australia. Zootaxa 3696(1): 1-293

Lee, C. & Sadovy, Y. 1998. A taste for live fish: Hong Kong's live reef fish market. Naga ICLARM Q. 21(2): 38-42.

Ramm, D.C., Pender, P.J., Willing, R.S. & Buckworth, R.C. 1990. Large-scale spatial patterns of abundance within the assemblage of fish caught by prawn trawlers in Northern Australian waters. Australian Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 41(1): 79-95.

Randall, J.E. 2005. Reef and shore fishes of the South Pacific. New Caledonia to Tahiti and the Pitcairn Islands. Honolulu : University of Hawaii Press 707 pp.

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1990. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 507 pp. figs. 

Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & Steene, R. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Bathurst : Crawford House Press 557 pp. figs. 

Roughley, T.C. 1957. Fish and Fisheries of Australia. Sydney : Angus & Robertson 341 pp. 

Russell, B., Lawrence, A., Myers, R., Carpenter, K.E. & Smith-Vaniz, W.F. 2016. Lutjanus russellii. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016: e.T194334A2313677. http://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T194334A2313677.en. Downloaded on 18 February 2019.

Sainsbury, K.J., Kailola, P.J. & Leyland, G.G. 1984. Continental Shelf Fishes of Northern and North-Western Australia. Canberra : Fisheries Information Service 375 pp. figs & pls.

Smith, R.L., Salini, J.P. & Blaber, S.J.M. 1991. Food intake and growth in the Moses perch, Lutjanus russelli (Bleeker), with reference to predation on penaeid prawns. Journal of Fish Biology 38(6): 897-903 https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8649.1991.tb03629.x

Quick Facts


CAAB Code:37346065

Conservation:IUCN Least Concern

Depth:3-80 m

Fishing:Commercial/recreational fish

Habitat:Reef associated

Max Size:45 cm TL

Species Image Gallery

Species Maps

CAAB distribution map