Red lionfish

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Red lionfish
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Scorpaeniformes
Family: Scorpaenidae
Subfamily: Pteroinae
Genus: Pterois
Species: P. volitans
Binomial name
Pterois volitans
(Linnaeus, 1758)

The red lionfish (Pterois volitans) is a venomous, coral reef fish in the family Scorpaenidae, order Scorpaeniformes. P. volitans is natively found in the Indo-Pacific region, but has become an invasive problem in the Caribbean Sea, as well as along the East Coast of the United States. This and a similar species, Pterois miles have both been deemed as invasive species. Red lionfish are clad in white stripes alternated with red/maroon/brown stripes. Adults in this species can grow as large as 47cm (18.5 inches)[1] in length, while juveniles are typically shorter than 1 inch (2.5 cm).[2] The average red lionfish lives for around 10 years.[3] As with many species within the Scopaenidae family, it has large, venomous spines that protrude from the body, similar to a mane, giving it the common name of the lionfish. The venomous spines make the fish inedible or deter most potential predators. Lionfish reproduce monthly and are able to quickly disperse during their larval stage for expansion of their invasive region. There are no definitive predators of the lionfish, and many organizations are promoting the harvest and consumption of lionfish in efforts to prevent further increases in the already high population densities.

Red lionfish near Gilli Banta Island

Geographic distribution

P. volitans is native to the Indo-Pacific region,[4] including the western and central Pacific and off the coast of western Australia. However, the species has been accidentally introduced into the Western Atlantic and has become an invasive species there.

Life history and behavior

Reproduction

They are mainly a solitary species and courting is the only time they aggregate, generally one male with several females.[3] Both P. volitans and P. miles are gonochoristic, only showing sexual dimorphism during reproduction. Similar courtship behaviors are observed in all Pterois species, including circling, sidewinding, following, and leading. The lionfish are mostly nocturnal, leading to the behaviors typically around nightfall and continuing through the night. After courtship, the female releases two egg masses that are fertilized by the male before floating to the surface.

Early life history and dispersal

Although little is known about the larval stage of the lionfish, some traits of the larvae include a large head, a long, triangular snout, long, serrated head spines, a larve pelvic spine, and coloration only in the pelvic fins. Larvae hatch 36 hours after fertilization.[3] They are good swimmers and can eat small ciliates just four days after conception.[3] The larval stage is the shortest stage of the lionfish’s life, with a duration of about one month.[5]

Venom

Lionfish venomous dorsal spines are used purely for defense. When threatened, the fish often faces its attacker in an upside-down posture which brings its spines to bear. However, its sting is usually not fatal to humans. If a human is envenomed, that person will experience extreme pain, and possibly headaches, vomiting, and breathing difficulties. A common treatment is soaking the afflicted area in hot water, as very few hospitals carry specific treatments.[6][7][8] However, immediate emergency medical treatment is still advised, as some people are more susceptible to the venom than others.

As an invasive species

Main article: Pterois

Two of the 15 species of Pterois, P. volitans and P. miles, have established themselves as significant invasive species off the East Coast of the United States and in the Caribbean. About 93% of the invasive lionfish population is P. volitans, also known as the red lionfish.[9] The red lionfish is found off the East Coast of the United States and the Caribbean Sea, and was likely first introduced off the Florida coast in the early to mid-1990s.[10] Adult lionfish specimens are now found along the US East Coast from Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, to Florida, and in Bermuda, the Bahamas, and throughout the Caribbean, including the Turks and Caicos, Haiti, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, Belize, Honduras, Aruba and Mexico.[11]

Predators and prey

In its invasive range, few predators of the lion fish have been documented. Most larger Atlantic and Caribbean fish and sharks that should be able to eat the lionfish have not recognized them as prey, likely due to the novelty of the fish in the invaded areas. Lionfish have, however, been found in the stomachs of Nassau and tiger groupers in the Bahamas.[12] The lionfish themselves are voracious feeders and have outcompeted and filled the niche of the overfished snapper and grouper. When hunting, they corner prey using their large fins, then use their quick reflexes to swallow the prey whole. They hunt primarily from late afternoon to dawn. High rates of prey consumption, a wide variety of prey, and increasing abundance of the fish lead to concerns the fish may have a very active role in the already declining trend of fish densities.[13] As the fish become more abundant, they are becoming a threat to the fragile ecosystems they have invaded. Between outcompeting similar fish and having a varied diet, the lionfish is drastically changing and disrupting the food chains holding the marine ecosystems together. As these chains are disrupted, declining densities of other fish populations are found, as well as declines in the overall diversity of coral reef areas.

Popular literature

A lionfish is in the aquarium of Captain Jean-Luc Picard's ready room for all seven years of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

It was also featured in the film The Spy Who Loved Me, where the villain Karl Stromberg (Curd Jürgens) who, for the scene, was pretending to be a marine biologist, tests James Bond's knowledge of fish.

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑ National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science "Have You Seen Me?"
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 Encyclopedia of Life (EOL). (2011, January 19). Retrieved 4 May 2011 from (http://eol.org)
  4. ↑ Lougher, Tristan (2006). What Fish?: A Buyer's Guide to Marine Fish. Interpet Publishing. p. 197. ISBN 0-7641-3256-3. "Where is it from? Eastern Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean." 
  5. ↑ Leis, J.M. and D.S. Rennis. 2000. Scorpaenidae. An Identification Guide to marine fish larvae. 217-255.
  6. ↑ Aldred B, Erickson T, Lipscomb J (November 1996). "Lionfish envenomations in an urban wilderness". Wilderness Environ Med 7 (4): 291–6. doi:10.1580/1080-6032(1996)007[0291:LEIAUW]2.3.CO;2. PMID 11990126. 
  7. ↑ Taylor, G. (2000). "Toxic fish spine injury: Lessons from 11 years experience". South Pacific Underwater Medicine Society journal 30 (1). ISSN 0813-1988. OCLC 16986801. Retrieved 2008-08-13. 
  8. ↑ Vetrano SJ, Lebowitz JB, Marcus S (November 2002). "Lionfish envenomation". J Emerg Med 23 (4): 379–82. doi:10.1016/S0736-4679(02)00572-3. PMID 12480019. Retrieved 2008-08-13. 
  9. ↑ Hamner, R.M, et al. 2007. Mitochondrial cytochrome b analysis reveals two invasive lionfish species with strong founder effects in the western Atlantic. Journal of Fish Biology. 71:214-222.
  10. ↑ Whitfield, P; Gardner, T; Vives, SP; Gilligan, MR; Courtney Jr, WR; Ray, GC; Hare, JA (2003). "The Introduction and Dispersal of the Indo-Pacific Lionfish (Pterois volitans) Along the Atlantic Coast of North America". In: SF Norton (ed). Diving for Science...2003. Proceedings of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences (22nd Annual Scientific Diving Symposium). Retrieved 2008-08-13. 
  11. ↑ Whitfield PE, Hare J a, David AW, et al. Abundance estimates of the Indo-Pacific lionfish Pterois volitans/miles complex in the Western North Atlantic. Biological Invasions. 2006;9(1):53-64. Available at: http://www.springerlink.com/index/10.1007/s10530-006-9005-9
  12. ↑ Maljkovic, A., et al. 2008. Predation on the invasive red lionfish, Pterois volitans, by native groupers in the Bahamas. Coral Reefs 27:501.
  13. ↑ Cote, I.M., A. Maljkovie. 2010. Predation rates of Indo-Pacific lionfish on Bahamian coral reefs. Marine Ecology Progress Series 404:219-225.

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