Scientific Name
Lutjanus malabaricus

Common Name
Malabar blood snapper

Biology
Inhabit both coastal and offshore reefs. They tend to be associated with sponge and gorgonian-dominated habitats on the North West Shelf (Ref. 28006), and hard mud areas of the Arafura Sea. In Australia, they frequently form mixed shoals with L. erythropterus. Juveniles tend to inhabit shallow inshore waters and larger fish live in deeper waters (Ref. 27260, 27264). Feed mainly on fishes, with small amounts of benthic crustaceans, cephalopods and other benthic invertebrates (Ref. 6390). They forage mostly at night (Ref. 6390). Marketed fresh, dried-salted (Ref. 55) and frozen (Ref. 9987).

Classification

Classified By

Bloch & Schneider, 1801

Class

Ray-finned fishes (Actinopterygii)

Order

Perch-like fish (Perciformes)

Family

Snappers (Lutjanidae)

Distribution

Region

Indo-West Pacific

Distribution

Indo-West Pacific: Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea to Fiji, north to southern Japan, south to Australia. This species has been frequently misidentified as Lutjanus sanguineus (Ref. 55). There are unsubstantiated reports of this species from off East Africa.

Range

35°N - 38°S, 47°E - 176°W

Environment

Climate

Tropical

Water Temperature From

Unknown °C

Water Temperature To

Unknown °C

Depth From - meters

12 m

Depth To - meters

100 m

Zone

reef-associated

Environment

Marine; reef-associated; depth range 12 - 100 m (Ref. 55)

Trophic Level

4.46 s.e. 0.79 Based on diet studies.

Occurs in Marine / Salt water

True

Occurs in Brackish water

False

Occurs in Fresh Water

False

Occurs on Reefs

True

Is kept in Aquariums

True

Physical Size and Genetics

Maximum Length

100.0 cm

Common Length

50.0 cm

Phylogenetic Diversity Index

PD50 = 0.5000 many relatives (e.g. carps) 0.5 - 2.0 few relatives (e.g. lungfishes)

Human Uses and Population

Human Uses

Fisheries: highly commercial; gamefish: yes; aquarium: commercial

Vulnerability

Moderate to high vulnerability (50 of 100)

Resilience

Low, minimum population doubling time 4.5 - 14 years (K=0.12-0.18; tmax=12; Fec=5,000,000)

Threat To Humans

Harmless

IUCN Red List Status

Not Evaluated