Pristipomoides filamentosus

Description

Pristipomoides filamentosus, commonly known as the crimson jobfish, crimson snapper, opakapaka, or Hawaiian pink snapper, is a species of snapper native to the Indian Ocean and into the Pacific Ocean as far east as Hawaii and Tahiti. They inhabit waters over rocky substrates at depths from 40 to 400 m (130 to 1,310 ft) seemingly preferring to remain between 180 and 270 m (590 and 890 ft). This species can reach a length of 100 cm (39 in), though most are around 50 cm (20 in). The greatest known weight for this species is 8.2 kg (18 lb). This species is very important to local commercial fisheries and is sought out as a game fish. One of the Deep Seven species of Hawai'i. Known parasites of the crimson jobfish include the cymothoid isopod Anilocra gigantea,, the pennellid copepod Lernaeolophus sultanus and the nematodes Cucullanus bourdini and Raphidascaris (Ichthyascaris) etelidis. According to the FAO, the fish have been overexploited, but are in a recovering state. The commercial capture of crimson jobfish sharply dropped to 4,400 tonnes in 2009 from 25,300 tonnes the previous year.