The lane snapper is silvery-pink to reddish in color, with short, irregular pink and yellow lines on its sides; diffuse black spot, about as large as the eye; the dorsal fin centered above the lateral line

Lateral line

The lateral line is a sense organ in aquatic organisms , used to detect movement and vibration in the surrounding water. Lateral lines are usually visible as faint lines running lengthwise down each side, from the vicinity of the gill covers to the base of the tail...

; outer margin of caudal fin blackish. Similar fish are the mutton snapper

Mutton snapper

The mutton snapper is a fish of the Lutjanidae) family. Largely a Caribbean species, they can be found from North Carolina to South America. They prefer low relief reef structure searching for fishes, shrimps, crabs, squid, and snails. In the Florida keys they may be encountered in shallow water,...

, Lutjanus analis, and the mangrove snapper

Mangrove snapper

The mangrove snapper, Lutjanus griseus, is a snapper in the family Lutjanidae. It is also known as the gray snapper, mango snapper, or cabellerote....

, Lutjanus griseus.

Juveniles are found inshore over grass beds or shallow reef

Reef

In nautical terminology, a reef is a rock, sandbar, or other feature lying beneath the surface of the water ....

s. Adults are found offshore off wrecks and on reefs. The lane snapper is abundant in South Florida (specifically in the Florida Keys

Florida Keys

The Florida Keys are a coral archipelago in southeast United States. They begin at the southeastern tip of the Florida peninsula, about south of Miami, and extend in a gentle arc south-southwest and then westward to Key West, the westernmost of the inhabited islands, and on to the uninhabited Dry...

), extending down into the Caribbean

Caribbean

The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...

 and East into the Bahamas.

The Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

 record is 6 lb 6 oz (2.9 kg). Most fish tend to fall in the range of 8" to 12" long. Specimens above 12-14" are uncommon, and lane snapper larger than 14" in length are considered very uncommon.

The lane snapper spawns March through September; sexually mature at 6 inches (15 cm); feeds on bottom, taking crustacean

Crustacean

Crustaceans form a very large group of arthropods, usually treated as a subphylum, which includes such familiar animals as crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, krill and barnacles. The 50,000 described species range in size from Stygotantulus stocki at , to the Japanese spider crab with a leg span...

s, mollusks, and smaller fish. The lane snapper, like other species of snapper, is prized for its tasty white meat. Lane snapper are more typically caught in shallower (20'-60') waters than many of their other snapper counterparts, most commonly Yellowtail snapper

Yellowtail snapper

The yellowtail snapper, Ocyurus chrysurus, is an abundant species of snapper found along the North American coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Although they have been found as far north as Massachusetts, their normal range is along Florida down through the West Indies and Brazil.In certain reefs, most...

 and Mangrove snapper.  Larger specimens can be found in somewhat deeper waters, but are typically less plentiful.

Lane snapper are generally caught on hook and line, and are considered to be more aggressive and easier to catch than most of their snapper counterparts, as they tend to be less wary of hooks and lines. They are easily caught on a variety of live and frozen baits, such as shrimp, squid, cut bait, and minnows; artificial lures and baits have also been known to be effective. Generally, lane snapper are not specifically targeted by anglers, but many are caught as a by-product by anglers fishing for grouper

Grouper

Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes.Not all serranids are called groupers; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name grouper is usually given to fish in one of two large genera: Epinephelus...

 or other species of snapper

Lutjanidae

Snappers are a family of perciform fish, mainly marine but with some members inhabiting estuaries, feeding in freshwater. Some are important food fish. One of the best known is the red snapper....

as well as other shallow to mid-depth bottom fish.