Lane Snapper
Lane Snapper (Lutjanus synagris) is a saltwater species. The first thing to check: yellow to pink horizontal stripes running the length of a rosy silver body. The look-alike to rule out is Mutton Snapper: mutton snapper have a pointed anal fin, blue lines under the eye and a spot that sits higher and smaller relative to body size.
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| Scientific name | Lutjanus synagris |
|---|---|
| Also called | candy snapper, spot snapper |
| Water | Saltwater |
| Group | Snapper |
| Temperature | Common in water from about 70 to 84 °F. |
How to identify a Lane Snapper
- Yellow to pink horizontal stripes running the length of a rosy silver body.
- A distinct dark blotch on the flank beneath the front of the soft dorsal fin, sitting mostly above the lateral line.
- A yellow-tinged tail with a black margin, and a rounded anal fin.
If you would rather not work through a key on a wet deck, photograph the fish and let the app name it — you get the common and the scientific name back, and the record is filed before you release.
Fish it is mistaken for
| Species | How to tell them apart |
|---|---|
| Mutton Snapper | Mutton snapper have a pointed anal fin, blue lines under the eye and a spot that sits higher and smaller relative to body size. |
| Red Snapper | Red snapper are uniformly red with a pointed anal fin and no yellow striping. |
Read the full entry for Mutton Snapper and Red Snapper.
Where it lives
Gulf of Mexico, Florida, the Caribbean and the south Atlantic. Holds over reef, rubble, grass and sand bottom, often shallower than most reef snappers.
Temperature
Common in water from about 70 to 84 °F.
The conditions that matter
Lane snapper feed mostly at night over mixed bottom and move up in the column after dark. Current over the piece and the state of the tide decide the bite far more than surface weather.
Global Fishing League records 18 weather and water readings against every catch automatically — tide stage, barometric pressure, water temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, swell, current, moon phase and more, taken at your GPS position at the moment you log the fish. Over a season that turns a hunch about lane snapper into a pattern you can read.
See every reading recorded with a catch, or the guides to what each reading means.
Size limits, bag limits and seasons
Size limits, bag limits, slot limits and seasons are set by your state wildlife agency — and for many offshore and migratory species by federal regulators — and on many waters they differ from the statewide rule. They also change between seasons. Check the current regulations for the exact water you are fishing before you keep a fish — we do not republish limits here, because a number that is a season out of date is worse than no number.
What the app does do is make your side of it accurate: every catch carries a length measured from the photograph, a GPS position and a timestamp, exportable if you ever need to show your work for a tournament or a record claim. It is also what a Global Fishing League entry is built from — a record that verifies itself, without publishing where you caught the fish.