The main commercial snappers commercially caught are Malabar blood snapper Lutjanus malabaricus and Crimson snapper L. erythropterus (Badrudin et al, 2005). They are not separated in catch records so are considered here in a multi-species profile for family Lutjanidae (snappers). There is as yet no consensus as to the stock structure of these species, with studies showing between one and seven stocks of L. malabaricus in the region (Blaber et al, 2005; Prisantoso and Badrudin et al, 2010; Badrudin and Aisyah, 2009). This profile may undergo restructuring in the future as new information comes to light. This profile refers to Arafura and Timor Sea (WPP-718) assessment unit.

The red snapper fisheries within the regions are fished by thousand of fishers, including many subsistence fishers, meaning collection of data and information has proven to be challenging. The fisheries are targeted by multiple gears, including fish trawls which fish on the same fishing grounds as bottom longline and handlines. The fish trawls are large industrial-scale multi species vessels which transfer their catches directly to carrier vessels, and ship their catch directly overseas, particularly to Thailand and China.