About Lutjanus carponotatus (Richardson, 1842)
Lutjanus carponotatus has a moderately deep body, with a depth that is approximately 2.5 times its standard length. It has a rather pointed snout and a steep dorsal profile. The knob and incision on the preoperculum are weakly developed. Vomerine teeth can be arranged either in a triangular patch with a posterior extension or in a rhombus-shaped patch, and there is a small patch of grain-like teeth on the tongue. The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 14 to 16 soft rays, while the anal fin has 3 spines and 9 soft rays. The rear portions of the dorsal fin and anal fin are rounded; the pectoral fin has 15 to 17 rays, and the caudal fin is emarginate. Scale rows on the back rise diagonally from the lateral line. The maximum recorded total length for this species is 40 cm (16 in), though a length of 30 cm (12 in) is more typical. The overall body colour of this species ranges from bluish-grey to whitish, and it is marked with 8 to 9 yellow to golden-brown horizontal stripes along its flanks. It has yellow fins, and a blackish spot is present on the axil and the base of the uppermost pectoral fin rays. Juveniles have a wide white longitudinal stripe that runs from the snout to the base of the caudal fin, with alternating dark brown to black stripes running above and below this white stripe.
This species is distributed across the Indo-West Pacific. Its range extends east from the Andaman Sea coast and Bay of Bengal in western India to Papua New Guinea, north to the coasts of the South China Sea, and south to northern Australia. In Australia, it occurs from Shark Bay in Western Australia east to Moreton Bay in Queensland, and may reach as far south as northern New South Wales; it is also found on reefs in the Coral Sea. It inhabits depths between 2 and 80 m (6 ft 7 in and 262 ft 6 in), but is rarely recorded below 15 m (49 ft). Adult Lutjanus carponotatus live on coral reefs, in both sheltered lagoons and outer slopes, and are often found in turbid coastal waters. Juveniles are found in back reef areas near the shore, where tabular and corymb-like Acropora corals grow over a sandy substrate.
