I must admit that I had a difficult time finding facts online about the yellowtail snapper. Everything I could find was about catching them to eat or recipes to cook them. I did find out that they are fairly common, hence why I saw what was probably hundreds of them while on boat tours off the coast of Key West in the Florida Keys and then again in Nassau and Castaway Key, Bahamas.
We left from Key West and headed out a nearby reef, where we went underneath to view what was happening by the reef. Several fish swarmed up to the boat, including the yellowtail snappers. They congregate in small groups and were looking for a bite to eat. It was my first of three boat tours, and while enjoyable, I think I need to learn to snorkel with a waterproof camera – the tours really don’t leave much time for viewing and photographing the fish.
However, a few years later, I did another semi-sub boat tour in Nassau, where I saw even more yellowtail snapper, and years later another glass bottom boat tour in Castaway Key (both had been excursions while traveling via the Disney Dream). They are fun fish, eager for food and often traveling in big schools.
For more about yellowtail snappers, visit my page about them.