Etelis boweni

Osteichthyes Lutjanidae Genus Etelis Etelis boweni
Bowen’s red snapper, Giant ruby snapper
27 cm TL
Characteristic features:
Colour:

Orange-red dorsally becoming silvery white below, black tip on upper caudal-fin lobe.

Size:

Exceeding 150 cm TL.

Distribution:

Indo-West Pacific in tropical waters.

Habitat:

Over rocky bottoms at 200–300 m depth.

Biology:

Length at first maturity was estimated at 61 cm TL in waters off Papua New Guinea1

Indonesian fisheries:

Caught mainly with bottom longlines and deep handlines. Commonly caught in conjunction with Etelis carbunculus.

Similar species:

Pristipomoides spp.

Pristipomoides argyrogrammicus
Pristipomoides argyrogrammicus

Pristipomoides species differ in having junction between spinous and soft portion of dorsal fin indistinct (vs. junction deeply incised); dorsal fin with 10 spines and 10 soft rays (vs. 10 spines and 11, very infrequently 10, soft rays) and maxilla without scales (vs. with).

to Pristipomoides spp.

Etelis coruscans
Flame snapper

Etelis coruscans

Etelis corsucans differs in having no black tip on upper caudal-fin lobe (vs. black tip present) and 23–28 gill rakers on first gill arch (vs. 11–12).

to Etelis coruscans

Etelis radiosus
Pale Snapper

Etelis radiosus

Etelis radiosus differs in having no black tip on upper caudal-fin lobe (vs. black tip present) and 32–36 gill rakers on first gill arch (vs. 11–12).

to Etelis radiosus

Etelis carbunculus
Pacific ruby snapper

Etelis carbunculus

Etelis carbunculus differs in having a smaller maximum size of 47 cm TL (vs. a larger maximum size exceeding 150 cm TL); a distinct, pointed opercular spine (vs. indistinct, rounded and usually fully covered by skin); no black tip on upper caudal-fin lobe (vs. a black tip present) and a slender head with a low dorsal profile (vs. robust and tall with steep dorsal profile).

to Etelis carbunculus
References:
  1. Lokani, P, Pili, H, Richards, A, Tiroba, G. Estimation of the unexploited biomass and maximum sustainable yield for the deep reef demersal fishes in Papua New Guinea. In: United States Agency for International Development and National Marine Fisheries Service Workshop on Tropical Fish Stock Assessment’.(Eds JJ Polovina and RS Shomura.) National Marine Fisheries Service NOAA Technical Report NMFS-SWFSC-148. 1990:29-54. https://swfsc.noaa.gov/publications/CR/1993/9360.PDF.