Long before marine ornamental aquaculture reached its modern fever pitch, researchers were investigating the aquaculture of saltwater fish for food production. The brightly colored Yellowtail Snapper is one such example, with reports of successful aquaculture going back to at least 1992.
With an eye towards sustainable collections at zoos and aquariums, and increasing fishing pressure on wild stocks to fulfill the demand for table fare, companies like FishEye Aquaculture are creating a new source for attractive display animals for large scale aquariums.
Being active swimmers and capable of reaching nearly 3 feet in length, this latest offering probably isn’t well suited to any home aquarium we’re aware of. But the next time you’re seeing a big school of these at a public aquarium, you’ll have to wonder if the fish you’re looking at were produced for display by FishEye Aquaculture.
FishEye’s Aqaucultured Yellowtail Snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) is the newest addition to our Aquacultured Display Collection!!!
Yellowtail Snapper are recognizable by the bright yellow stripe running from the tip of their snout to their bright yellow, and deeply forked tail fin. They are most commonly found schooling mid-water over reefs and shipwrecks off the coast of southern Florida, Bahamas, and throughout the Caribbean.
This species can reach a maximum length of 33″ (84 cm) and prefer a lot of open room to swim with a complementing structure for shelter. For this reason, we recommend this species be considered for zoos, attraction aquariums, and large displays only.
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