Dog snapper (Lutjanus jocu) is a saltwater, freshwater, brackish species recorded in the United States. It is mainly found over reef, at depths of 2–40 m.
Scientific name: Lutjanus jocu · Water: Saltwater, Freshwater, Brackish
Size: up to 128 cm
The dog snapper is a lutjanid whose adults are common around rocky or coral reefs, with the young in estuaries, occasionally entering rivers, and in mangrove areas. It feeds mainly on fishes and benthic invertebrates including shrimps, crabs, gastropods and cephalopods. It is recorded from 2 to 40 m, and it also enters fresh and brackish water. Its range is the western Atlantic, from Massachusetts to São Paulo in Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, with a separate population in the eastern Atlantic at St. Paul's Rocks and Ascension Island. Maximum length is about 128 cm total length, commonly about 60 cm, and it can live 33 years, maturing at about 32.4 cm. It is a commercial species, a gamefish and a public aquarium fish, with a high price category. Fishing vulnerability is high to very high at 66 of 100 and resilience low. IUCN lists it as data deficient.
Caution: large individuals carry a ciguatera risk. Heat, cold and marinating do not remove the toxin, which concentrates in the liver, roe and head, so avoid eating those parts. Seek medical help if numbness, tingling or a reversed sense of hot and cold follows a meal.
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