The Australasian snapper (''Pagrus auratus'') or silver seabream is a species of porgie found in coastal waters of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. Its distribution areas in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres are disjunct. Although it is almost universally known in Australia and New Zealand as snapper, it does not belong to the

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 ...

snapper family. It is highly prized as an edible fish, with a sweet sea taste and a firm texture. The species name is ''Chrysophrys auratus'', but previously referred to as ''Pagrus auratus''.

Regional variation in naming

Australia: cocknies (young smaller than legal size), red bream or pinkies (legal size), squire or squirefish (when bigger), snapper (at full size)

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 ...

: "pink snapper" to distinguish it from unrelated species Victoria: also schnapper (ref: Schnapper Point, Mornington) South Australia: the name "ruggers" is often used for smaller fish of legal size

Aboriginal people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

of the

Port Jackson Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta ...

area in Australia: they called it ''wollamie'' (also spelt ''wollamai'', and other variations). European colonists there knew it as the "light horseman", for the resemblance of the fish's skull to the helmet of a light horseman. New Zealand: snapper (or New Zealand snapper when there is need to distinguish from other species of snapper).

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

: (adult fish), (juveniles)

Habitat

The Australasian snapper is found on all coasts of New Zealand, especially in the north. In Australia, it is found along the south coast, mainly near

Kiama Kiama may refer to: * Electoral district of Kiama, a seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly * Kiama, New South Wales, a town * Kiama (spider), a genus of spiders *Municipality of Kiama The Municipality of Kiama is a local government ar ...

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples of berries in the cul ...

Gerringong Gerringong () is a town located about ten minutes drive south of Kiama, New South Wales, Kiama, and about twenty minutes north of Nowra, New South Wales, Nowra in the Illawarra, New South Wales, Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia in ...

Gerroa Gerroa is a coastal town in the Municipality of Kiama, in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia 133 kilometres south of Sydney. It is considered to be the southernmost town in the Illawarra region. Nearby towns are Gerringong, ...

, Huskisson, Vincentia, and

Shoalhaven The City of Shoalhaven is a local government area in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is about south of Sydney. The Princes Highway passes through the area, and the South Coast railway line traverses the norther ...

. It is also found on the coast of

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, but in smaller numbers. The fish spawn in inshore waters and live in rocky areas and reefs of up to deep. They school, and will migrate between reefs. Larger fish are known to enter estuaries and harbours, for example

Port Phillip Bay Port Phillip ( Kulin: ''Narm-Narm'') or Port Phillip Bay is a horsehead-shaped enclosed bay on the central coast of southern Victoria, Australia. The bay opens into the Bass Strait via a short, narrow channel known as The Rip, and is comple ...

has a renowned seasonal snapper run. Growth rates within the wild stocks vary with some (i.e. the Hauraki Gulf, NZ) growing rapidly and to a smaller maximum length, while stocks in east and west Australia are known to grow more slowly. The species is capable of living about 40 years throughout much of its range in Australia, and the Australian recordholder of 40 years and 10 months was a large-nosed male, caught on 1 September 2007 off Bunbury, Western Australia, and photographed on the day of capture. Sexual maturity is reached at about long and a small percentage of the males will turn into females at puberty. Large individuals of both sexes develop a prominent hump on the head.Dianne J. Bray & Martin F. Gomon, 2011, Snapper, Chrysophrys auratus, in Fishes of Australia, accessed 09 Sep 2014, http://www.fishesofaustralia.net.au/home/species/678 Anglers are advised not to take immature fish, so as not to reduce breeding stock. The legal size in Australia varies by state, from and a bag limit of five fish per person in

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 ...

to in

. During spawning, these fish obtain a metallic green sheen which indicates a high concentration of acid buildup within the scales' infrastructure. Minimum sizes are supposed to be designed to allow these fish to participate in spawning runs at least once before they become available to the fishery, but given the slow growth rates of this species, a need exists to consider area closures and/or further increase the minimum sizes in each state to reduce the chances of

growth overfishing Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing Fish stocks, fish stock), resu ...

of the various populations of snapper throughout its range. This may be important with recent developments in technology such as

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based hyperbolic navigation system owned by the United States Space Force and operated by Mission Delta 31. It is one of the global navigation satellite systems (GNSS) that provide geol ...

Relationship with humans

Snapper was an important traditional food for

, especially the tribes to the north of the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

, where snapper bones sometimes make up the majority of archaeological middens. Snapper is known by multiple names, including tāmure, a word to describe adults, and karatī, a word describing juvenile fish. There are numerous traditional ways to prepare the fish. One specific to snapper was kaniwha, where the meat would be submerged in fresh water and squeezed numerous times, then eaten raw. The nene (base of the tongue) was considered the most prestigious part of the fish to eat.

Fisheries

Silver seabream total production thousand tonnes 1950-2022

Catches of Australasian snapper have varied between 25,600 and 34,300 tonnes in 2000–2009, with Japan and New Zealand reporting the largest catches.

References

* *

External links

Fisheries Western Australia - Pink Snapper Fact Sheet

Snapper
Fishfiles by Fisheries Research and Development Corporation * Snapper Fishing Spots in Sydney
Further Information
Red Snappers.
Fishes of Australia : ''Pagrus auratus''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Australasian snapper Australian snapper Marine fish of Australia Marine fauna of East Asia Marine fish of New Zealand Fish of Oceania Commercial fish Taxa named by Johann Reinhold Forster Australian snapper