''Aphareus rutilans'', the rusty jobfish, ironjaw snapper, red smalltooth job, silvermouth or small tooth jobfish, is a species of marine

ray-finned fish Actinopterygii (; ), members of which are known as ray-finned fish or actinopterygians, is a class of bony fish that comprise over 50% of living vertebrate species. They are so called because of their lightly built fins made of webbings of sk ...

, a snapper belonging to the

family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Lutjanidae Lutjanidae or snappers are a family of perciform fishes, mainly marine but with some members inhabiting estuaries and, in some cases, fresh water (e.g., '' Lutjanus goldiei''). The family includes about 113 species. Most species are used for foo ...

. It is found in the Indo-Pacific region.

Description

''Aphareus rutilans'' has an elongated, compressed and

fusiform Fusiform (from Latin ''fusus'' ‘spindle’) means having a spindle (textiles), spindle-like shape that is wide in the middle and tapers at both ends. It is similar to the lemon (geometry), lemon-shape, but often implies a focal broadening of a ...

body. It has a lower jaw which projects beyond the upper and the mouth extends to the centreline of the eye. It has a flat area between the eyes. The jaws are quilted with thin bands of small teeth and there are no teeth on the roof of the mouth. The

dorsal fin A dorsal fin is a fin on the back of most marine and freshwater vertebrates. Dorsal fins have evolved independently several times through convergent evolution adapting to marine environments, so the fins are not all homologous. They are found ...

has 10 spines and 10, occasionally 11, soft rays while the

anal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported o ...

has 3 spines and 8 soft rays. These fins lack scales. The rearmost ray in both the dorsal and anal fins are elongated. The

caudal fin Fins are moving appendages protruding from the body of fish that interact with water to generate thrust and help the fish swim. Apart from the tail or caudal fin, fish fins have no direct connection with the back bone and are supported only ...

is deeply forked or

lunate Lunate is a crescent or moon-shaped microlith. In the specialized terminology of lithic reduction, a lunate flake is a small, crescent-shaped lithic flake, flake removed from a stone tool during the process of pressure flaking. In the Natufian cu ...

in shape. The overall colour is bluish-grey to mauve or reddish with the dorsal, pectoral and caudal fins being yellowish to reddish. The lips of the upper jaw are dark. This species attains a maximum

total length Fish measurement is the measuring of individual fish and various parts of their anatomies, for data used in many areas of ichthyology, including taxonomy and fishery biology. Overall length Standard length (SL) is the length of a fish measured f ...

of , although is more typical, and a maximum weight of .

Distribution

''Aphareus rutilans'' has a wide Indo-Pacific distribution. It extends from the

Gulf of Aqaba The Gulf of Aqaba () or Gulf of Eilat () is a large gulf at the northern tip of the Red Sea, east of the Sinai Peninsula and west of the Arabian Peninsula. Its coastline is divided among four countries: Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. ...

in Israel and Jordan south through the

Red Sea The Red Sea is a sea inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. Its connection to the ocean is in the south, through the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden. To its north lie the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and th ...

and along the East African coast as far south as South Africa through the Indian Ocean, including its islands, and east into the Pacific Ocean. In the Pacific its range extends east to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

, north to the

Ryukyu The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...

and Ogasawara islands of southern Japan and south to Australia. in Australia it is found at the Scott Reef of

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, in the

Arafura Sea The Arafura Sea (or Arafuru Sea) lies west of the Pacific Ocean, overlying the continental shelf between Australia and Western New Guinea (also called Papua), which is the Indonesian part of the Island of New Guinea. Geography The Arafura Sea is ...

off the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (abbreviated as NT; known formally as the Northern Territory of Australia and informally as the Territory) is an states and territories of Australia, Australian internal territory in the central and central-northern regi ...

, and the northern

Great Barrier Reef The Great Barrier Reef is the world's largest coral reef system, composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over over an area of approximately . The reef is located in the Coral Sea, off the coast of Queensland, ...

as well as reefs in the

Coral Sea The Coral Sea () is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean, South Pacific off the northeast coast of Australia, and classified as an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia, interim Australian bioregion. The Coral Sea extends down t ...

off

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

. The larvae have been recorded as far south as

Crowdy Head Crowdy Head is a headland on the coast of New South Wales, Australia, 7 km from Harrington between Forster and Port Macquarie. The head is mostly cleared and was quarried between 1895 and 1901 for the Manning River Manning River (Birpa ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Habitat and biology

''Aphareus rutilans'' is found at depths between where it is found in reefs and areas with rocky bottoms, although it is most common at depths of . It is a predatory species which feeds on fish, squid and crustaceans. Spawning was recorded as taking place in the spring and summer in Vanuatu, reaching its peak in November and December.

Taxonomy

''Aphareus rutilans'' was first formally described in 1830 by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

zoologist Zoology ( , ) is the scientific study of animals. Its studies include the structure, embryology, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct, and how they interact with their ecosystems. Zoology is one ...

Georges Cuvier with the type locality given as the Red Sea but it may also have been Mauritius or Indonesia. The specific name ''rutilans'' means “rusty”, a reference to the reddish colour of the back and fins.

Fisheries

''Aphareus rutilans'' is frequently encountered in fish markets in its range, it is largely caught using handlines and vertical long lines. It is also caught by spear fishing. It is a locally common species throughout much of its range and so makes up an important component of the catch for many deep water fisheries. In Hawaii it is not targeted and is caught as bycatch, the stock is considered to have been depleted and catch limits have been imposed.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q2279052 rutilans Fish described in 1830