Pinkish-red snapper with huge eyes and a deeply forked red tail, living on rocky bottoms from 100 to 450 m, near oceanic islands. It shows up in deep bottom fishing from the Caribbean to Fernando de Noronha and is highly prized at the table.
Also called: olhão, vermelho-olhão, olho-de-vidro, queen snapper, night snapper, brim snapper
The olhão (queen snapper) is a deep-water snapper of the western Atlantic, ranging from Bermuda and North Carolina to the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and the Brazilian coast down to São Paulo, including Fernando de Noronha and Atol das Rocas. Adults live on rocky bottoms between 100 and 450 m, feeding mostly on small fish and squid, and are abundant near oceanic islands. It reaches 100 cm and 6.3 kg. Juveniles appear as bycatch in trawl fishing. The flesh is of good quality and mostly sold fresh. In sport fishing it is a target of deep drop, deep bottom fishing done with an electric reel and heavy sinker.
fun facts
Portaria MPA nº 532/2025 lists three names for the species: olhão, vermelho-olhão and olho-de-vidro.
The large eye is the fish's mark and gives it its Portuguese name; in English it is queen snapper.
In Cuba and Puerto Rico it is known as cachucho.
how to recognize it
identification
Fusiform body and small head, with a large eye and short snout. Back and flanks bright pink to red, belly pink, fins pink (except the spiny part of the dorsal fin), and tail a vivid red, deeply forked. The scale rows on the back run parallel to the lateral line, unlike Lutjanus, where they rise diagonally. The saçupema (Lutjanus buccanella) has a black spot at the base of the pectoral fin.
how queen snapper fishing looks
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Each card shows the day's index (0 to 100) and, below it, a strip with the index for each hour, from 0h to 23h. from poor to excellent.
Western Atlantic, from Bermuda and North Carolina (USA) to the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and the Brazilian coast down to São Paulo, including Fernando de Noronha and Atol das Rocas (FishBase). In Brazil it lives on the slope and around oceanic islands, below 100 m.
Habitat: Rocky bottoms and slope edges from 100 to 450 m, in cold deep water, very abundant near oceanic islands. Small ones enter as trawl bycatch.
coast
North CoastNortheast CoastSoutheast Coastshelfoceanic
calendar and clock
when to fish
best season
time of yearbest: May–Jul
JanFebSeaAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
It is fished all year on the slope. In practice, the season is the calm-sea windows that allow a straight drift; the species barely responds to surface seasons.
best time of day
Any time. At 100 m or deeper daylight matters little; what decides is the current and the boat's drift. A moving current tends to help.
weather, water and behavior
what affects the queen snapper
sensitivity The little bars show how much each factor affects this species. Five full: it feels it a lot.
cold and cold fronts
Lives in cold deep water; a cold front at the surface does not reach the bottom.
atmospheric pressure
Small effect at 200 m; the trouble from the front is the rough sea it brings.
moon
The moon phase stirs the current around islands and banks, and it is the current that turns the bottom on.
rain
Little effect on the fish, only on the comfort of the angler.
water level
Does not apply at sea. The equivalent is the bottom current: with strong current the line does not drop straight.
noise
At this depth boat noise does not reach the fish.
wind
Strong wind pulls the line off plumb and the sinker stops touching bottom. Prefer calm seas.
tide
Around oceanic islands, the moving tide organizes the current and switches the fishing on.
depth
Lives between 100 and 450 m, on rocky bottom or along slope edges.
5'6" to 6'6", heavy action with a firm tip, suited to deep fishing, 50 to 80 lb
spinning / baitcasting reel
electric reel or large deep-sea baitcasting reel, with 400 to 600 m of line
line
braided line 50 to 80 lb
leader
monofilament or fluorocarbon 80 to 130 lb, 2 to 3 m, with a hook dropper in line
hook
circle hook 8/0 to 12/0, on a dropper of two to four hooks
lures
bottom jig of 200 to 400 g (deep jigging)
LED light or reflective tape above the dropper
natural baits
squid strips
sardine or mackerel in pieces
shrimp
accessories
heavy sinker (500 g to 1 kg, depending on the current)
descender
gloves and pliers
tip from an angler
As soon as the sinker touches bottom, reel up a few meters and keep the line taut in the drift, with the dropper baits a few meters off the bottom.
what the law says
rules for the queen snapper
Summary of the regulations we found, with the source for each. Rules change; before keeping or transporting fish, check with the state environmental agency. Conservation: It is not on the Brazilian national list (Portaria GM/MMA nº 1.667/2026). The IUCN classifies it as Data Deficient (2015 assessment): there is no estimate of its extinction risk. We found no minimum size or Brazilian federal quota specific to the species.
Puerto Rico (federal waters): up to 5 per person per day
5 per person per day; 15 per boat with 3 or more people
In federal waters around Puerto Rico, beyond 9 miles from shore, a recreational angler may keep at most 5 fish per day combining groupers, snappers and parrotfish (up to 15 per boat when 3 or more people are aboard). The olhão (queen snapper) counts as a snapper under this limit. The limit does not apply to holders of a commercial license from Puerto Rico or the Virgin Islands.
Puerto Rico (federal waters): descent device mandatory on board
1 descent device ready for use by anyone fishing for or carrying reef fish
Anyone who fishes for or carries reef fish (the olhão (queen snapper) is included in the definition) in federal waters off Puerto Rico must have aboard, ready for use, at least one descending device: a tool able to return the fish to the depth where it was caught, with a minimum weight of 454 g (16 oz) and 18.3 m (60 ft) of line, which releases the fish on its own, by operator action or when it comes loose at the bottom.
Mexico: up to 5 per species and 10 saltwater fish per day
5 specimens of the species per angler per day, within the limit of 10 saltwater fish
In recreational sport fishing in Mexican federal waters, each angler may keep up to 10 marine fish per day, no more than 5 of the same species. The olhão (cachucho) is not among the species reserved for sport fishing (marlin, sailfish, swordfish, dorado, roosterfish and tarpon) and has no quota of its own. Fish above the limit must be returned alive to the water, and sport-caught fish is for personal consumption, not for sale. Anglers fishing from a boat need a Conapesca permit.
Colombia: AUNAP license and catch and release as the main practice
personal AUNAP license; keep only fish that meets the minimum size, for personal useconfirm with the agency
Colombian sport fishing requires the personal, non-transferable AUNAP license (natural persons, nationals or foreigners). The resolution sets catch and release as the main practice and only allows keeping specimens that meet the minimum sizes, for personal use. We found no specific minimum size or marine quota for this species; confirm with AUNAP before taking any fish home.
catch and release Releasing the fish alive, quickly and with a wet hand. During a closed season it isn't always allowed: what the regulation says applies.
Hooked at hundreds of meters, the olhão reaches the surface with barotrauma (bulging eyes, inflated swim bladder). To release it, prefer a descending device, which returns the fish to the bottom; in Puerto Rico it is mandatory aboard.
in the kitchen
Good-quality flesh, sold mostly fresh. It is good steamed, grilled or in moqueca; FishBase does not flag ciguatera risk for the species.
calculator
how much it weighs without taking it out of the water
Length-weight relationship W = a·Lb (a = 0.01698, b = 2.93; FishBase (relação peso-comprimento bayesiana, estimativa da própria espécie)). It's an average: a fat or lean fish can vary by 10% to 20%.
estimated weight
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sources and references
The season weights (months), the time of day and the sensitivities (cold, pressure, moon, wind, rain, tide, strong light, murky water and noise) are the app's editorial estimates, based on the literature below and on the field experience of anglers and guides. They are not official data nor a measurement made for this species, and they may vary by region and year. Closed seasons and legal rules appear in the rules section, with the norm and a link.
