Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, Juvenile. Fish collected out of the Km 17, El Tule, Cabo Real, Baja California Sur, April 2009, during a rare occasion when fresh water was flowing in the river. Length: 5.8 cm (2.3 inches). These are also present in the San José Estuary, Baja California Sur, based on 2 collections made with a cast net in April 2018 that were 9.9 cm (3.9 inches) and 11.3 cm (4.4 inches).

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur, September 2020. Length: 28 cm (11 inches). Catch, photograph and identification courtesy of Eli (obsessiveangling.wordpress.com).

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, Juvenile. Fish caught off the beach, Cabo Real, Km 21, Baja California Sur, May 2020. Length: 39 cm (15 inches).

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, Juvenile. Fish caught from coastal waters off Loreto, Baja California Sur, August 2014. Photograph courtesy of Chris Wheaton, Fullerton, California.

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, Juvenile. Fish courtesy of the commercial bait salesmen of Puerto Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, November 2020. Length 41 cm (16 inches).

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus. Very nice head-shot of a fish caught from shore at Los Barriles, Baja California Sur, December 2017. Length: 58 cm (23 inches). Weight: 3.2 kg (7 lbs 0 oz). Catch courtesy of Ian Franck, New Westminster, British Columbia, Canada. Photograph and identification courtesy of Brad Murakami, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada.

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Punta Ballena, Baja California Sur, October 2024. Length: 71 cm (2 feet 4 inches). Weight: 5.0 kg (11 lbs 0 oz). Catch and photograph courtesy of Chip Shapley, Los Barriles, Baja California Sur.

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Loreto, Baja California Sur, May 2014. Length: 1.04 m (3 feet 5 inches). Weight: 19.4 Kg (49 lbs). Catch and photograph courtesy of Danie Botha, Dawson Creek, British Columbia. A most interesting catch for a kayak outing!

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus. Fish caught from coastal waters off Puerto Los Cabos, Baja California Sur, July 2009. Length: 1.30 m (4 feet 0 inches). Weight 23 kg (50 lbs).

Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus. Underwater photograph taken in coastal waters off Loreto, Baja California Sur, October 2024. Photograph courtesy of Bob Hillis, Ivins, Utah.

The Pacific Dog Snapper, Lutjanus novemfasciatus, is the largest member in the Snapper or Lutjanidae Family, that is also known as the Pacific Cubera Snapper and in Mexico as pargo prieto and locally as pargo cerizo. They are also known in Central America as “Roqueros.” Globally, there are sixty-seven species in the genus Lutjanus, of which nineteen are found in Mexican waters, ten in the Atlantic and nine in the Pacific Ocean.

The Pacific Dog Snapper has a massive body that has a body depth of 31% to 35% of standard length that varies from deep to light red and transitions to silver ventrally. Juveniles and most adults have 8 or 9 bars on the upper half of their sides (pictured above). In adults the bars may not be present or fade quickly after collection. All their fins are dark. They have a pointed snout and a large set of canine teeth that are longer than the diameter of the eye’s pupil. Their anal fin has 3 spines and 7 or 8 rays and is rounded; their caudal fin has a straight margin; their dorsal fin has 10 spines and 13 or 14 rays and has a rounded tip; and, they have 26 or 17 pectoral rays. They have 12 gill rakers on the lower arch. Their body is heavily scaled with the scale rows on the upper back being oblique above the lateral line.0 feet).

The Pacific Dog Snapper are found in rocky and coral reef coastal waters at depths up to 60 m (200 feet) but are normally found in shallower waters within the range. Juveniles will enter freshwater streams and have been found up to 20 km (12 miles) upstream. They reach a maximum of 1.7 m (5 feet 7 inches) in length and 39 kg (86 lbs) in weight. As of January 1, 2024, the International Game Fish Association world record for length stood at 1.20 m (3 feet 11 inches) with the fish caught from coastal waters off Panama in March 2019. The corresponding world record for weight stood at 36.8 kg (81 lbs 3 oz) with the fish caught in coastal waters off Isla Senora, Panama, August 2022. I believe that fish larger than these records reside in the greater Los Cabos area. They feed at night on crustaceans and small schooling fish, including croakers, grunts, and wrasses and take shelter during the day. The Pacific Dog Snapper is poorly studied with very limited information available about their lifestyle and behavioral patterns including specific details on age, growth, longevity, movement patterns, diet, habitat use, and reproduction.

The Pacific Dog Snapper is a resident of all Mexican waters of the Pacific Ocean.

The adult Pacific Dog Snapper is an easy fish to identify and cannot be confused with any other species. Smaller fish can be confused with the Barred Pargo, Hoplopagrus guentheri (similar bars; wider body profile), the Colorado Snapper, Lutjanus colorado (scale rows above the dorsal fin are parallel) and the Graybar Grunt, Haemulon sexfasciatum (six thick dark bars; wider body profile).

From a conservation perspective the Pacific Dog Snapper is currently considered to be of Least Concern with stable, widely distributed populations. They are considered to be quality food fish and sold with regularity in the local food markets in the greater Los Cabos area. They are seasonal fish arriving some (but not all) years during the early summer months. Large fish are normally caught on large fly-lined live baits (white or striped mullet) but are exceedingly difficult to hook. Once hooked they are also extremely difficult to land, making short and very rapid retreats into heavy rock structures. Smaller fish are accessible from the beach and can be caught on cut squid utilizing traditional surf rigs. They are also a popular target of spear fishermen.

Length versus Weight Chart: I have included a Pacific Dog Snapper Weight From Length Conversion Table in this website to allow the accurate determination of a fish’s weight from its length and hopefully to promote its rapid and unharmed return to the ocean.