Welcome to the Marine Mili series, a regular column about all things marine! During this series I aim to inspire people to want to protect our oceans and all the marine life that call our oceans home. Hopefully after reading each column, you would have learnt something new including what we can do to help protect and preserve our oceans. You can follow me and my journey on my Instagram page: _marine_mili.

Snapper is a common marine fish in Victoria that is a popular recreational catch for many anglers.

The snapper got its name from the snapping noise that their mouth makes with their strong teeth and jaws. The large canine teeth they have help them to catch and hold prey which includes a large variety of other marine creatures such as other fish, squid, crustaceans, worms and even shellfish.

There are well over one hundred different species of snapper. However, in Victoria there is one main species of snapper which is commonly referred to by a few different names such as the pink snapper, the red bream or even just snapper.

The average length of this species is 50-70 centimetres however it can exceed that length and grow to over one metre. These fish on average also weigh about 5-10 kilograms.

Snapper have a lifespan on average of 20 years but they are known to live to over 40 years. As the snapper gets older it will develop a hump-like bulge on its head which helps indicate its age, and making it easy to know it is no longer a juvenile. Young snapper or juveniles are often called pinkies. The snapper will usually become ready to reproduce between the age of three and five years.