About Lutjanus viridis (Valenciennes, 1846)
The blue-and-gold snapper, Lutjanus viridis, has an oblong body. Its pointed snout contains front and rear nostrils that are simple holes. It has a relatively large mouth with protractile jaws. Its teeth range from conical to canine-like in shape, and the front teeth are typically enlarged to resemble fangs. Vomerine teeth are arranged in a V-shape with no rearward extension, and there is a patch of teeth on each side of the palate, but no teeth grow on the tongue. The preoperculum has a weakly developed incision and knob. The dorsal fin is continuous, with 10 spines and 14-15 soft rays, while the anal fin has 3 spines and 8 soft rays. The rear edges of both the dorsal and anal fins may be rounded or pointed. The pectoral fins contain 16-17 rays, and the caudal fin is either truncate or weakly emarginate. This species reaches a maximum total length of 30 cm (12 in). Its overall body color is bright yellow, which can appear dark, with five black-margined blue stripes running along its flanks. The abdomen is paler and marked with many thin orange to yellow lines. Individuals of this species frequently have a reddish face. The blue-and-gold snapper is native to the eastern Pacific Ocean, where it has a quite discontinuous distribution. It can be found at the mouth of the Gulf of California, southern Baja California, along the western coast of Mexico, and from southern Guatemala through Panama to Colombia. It also inhabits the Revillagigedo Islands of Mexico, Clipperton Island, Cocos Island of Costa Rica, Malpelo Island of Colombia, and the Galápagos Islands of Ecuador. It lives on rocky substrates and coral reefs, at depths down to at least 55 m (180 ft).
