Taken from Sportfishing Magazine.
http://www.sportfishingmag.com/gallery/ ... age=166195A "Lanetail" Snapper?
This unusual snapper (center) looks like a cross between a lane snapper (bottom) and a yellowtail snapper (top). Could this be a true hybrid? asks Dave Knutson of Jupiter, Florida, of the fish caught off Jupiter, Florida (where he's got other ostensible hybrid snapper). Yes, says SF's Florida-based Fish Facts expert, Ray Waldner. "I’ve examined your catch and believe it’s a hybrid resulting from a cross between a yellowtail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) and a lane snapper (Lutjanus synagris), Dave. Much of the fish’s pigmentation is similar to that of yellowtail snapper, as is its mouth. However, the red pigmentation on the fish’s caudal fin, as well as the color of its caudal peduncle (the narrow area immediately in front of the caudal fin) is atypical of yellowtail snapper, and its forehead profile most closely resembles that of a lane snapper. There are several references to yellowtail snapper and lane snapper interbreeding in the ichthyological literature, so hybridization between these species is known to occur. Yellowtail/lane snapper hybrids also raise an interesting taxonomic question: Is the genus Ocyurus really distinct from Lutjanus? The morphological differences between the fishes in these genera are relatively minor and might be due to ecological differences. Additionally, the fact that species in these two genera can interbreed and produce viable hybrids indicates that they are genetically more similar than their current classification suggests. Thus, we might see yellowtail snapper included in the genus Lutjanus sometime in the future."
It's very interesting, because some of us on the forums come across hybrids down here from time to time also.