MECHANICSVILLE, Va.—While my dissertation is focused on the life of Looe Key Reef, I am in no means an expert on that life. I do my best to identify the species I see, but I appreciate help in confirming or correcting my tentative identifications.

This photo was taken near Mooring 11 on Looe Key Reef at 1:56 p.m.:

Looe Key Reef (Mooring 11, 16 Aug 2014) 0152

LOOE KEY REEF, Fla. — Some yellowtail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) circle around a coral boulder in the vicinity of Mooring 11 at Looe Key Reef on Saturday, Aug. 16, 2014. (David M. Lawrence)

I identified several other species in the image besides yellowtail snapper, as well as one I cannot identify:

Species IDs for Looe Key Reef, Mooring 11 (Aug. 16, 2014), Image 0152

MECHANICSVILLE, Va. — The species tentatively identified in this image include yellowtail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus), common sea fan (Gorgonia ventalina), slimy sea plume (Antillogorgia americana), other sea plumes (Antillogorgia spp.), and mustard hill coral (Porites astreoides).

Here is the list of species tentatively identified in the image:

Phylum: Cnidaria

Class: Anthozoa

Order: Alcyonacea

Scientific Name Common Name
Gorgonia ventalina common sea fan
Antillogorgia
(Pseudopterogorgia) spp.
 miscellaneous
sea plumes
Antillogorgia americana
(Pseudopterogorgia americana)
 slimy sea plume

Order: Scleractinia (stony corals)

Scientific Name Common Name
Porites astreoides mustard hill coral

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)

Order: Perciformes (perchlike fishes)

Scientific Name Common Name
Ocyurus chrysurus yellowtail snapper

Taxonomic data obtained from the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS), except where otherwise noted.

If you know of any corrections, clarifications, or additional identifications to the species observed in the image, please let me know via the contact form below.