Appearance
The golden African snapper has a moderately slender body with a short snouted, blunt head with very large eyes. The mouth extends back to below the centre of the eye. The vomerine teeth are arranged in a triangular patch which has an obvious posterior extension. The incision and the knob on the preoperculum are not well developed. The dorsal fin has 10 spines and 13-14 soft rays while the anal fin contains 3 spines and 8 soft rays. The pectoral fins are relatively short and do not extend as far as the anus and the caudal fin is emarginate. This fish attains a maximum total length of 60 cm, although 50 cm is more typical. The colour of the back and upper flanks is bright pink and silvery white on lower flanks and abdomen, along the flanks there are a number of longitudinal golden stripes, one on each scale row.Distribution
The golden African snapper is found in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. It ranges along the west coast of Africa from Senegal to Nigeria and then from the Gulf of Guinea south to Angola. It has been reported from Cape Verde and the islands in the Gulf of Guinea.Behavior
The golden African snapper is a predatory species, feeding on other fishes and crustaceans.Habitat
This demersal species occurs at depths between 5 and 150 m, the adults over rock substrates.References:
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