Lionfish Facts

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/InNews/prolific2010.html …"Native to the Indian and Pacific oceans, red lionfish have no natural predators in the Caribbean and can produce 30 000 eggs each month. Within five weeks they can consume all the juvenile and small fish on a reef, threatening the delicate ecosystem, said Mark Hixon, a marine biologist at Oregon State University." http://www.underwatertimes.com/news.php?article_id=10956430128 …"In studies on small coral reefs in the Bahamas, Hixon and his graduate student Mark Albins determined that a single lionfish per reef reduced young juvenile fish populations by 79 percent in only a five-week period. Many species were affected, including cardinalfish, parrotfish, damselfish and others. One large lionfish was observed consuming 20 small fish in a 30-minute period. Lionfish are carnivores that can eat other fish up to two-thirds their own length. When attacking another fish, Hixon said, a lionfish uses its large, fan-like fins to herd smaller fish into a corner and then swallow them in a rapid strike. Because of their natural defense mechanisms they are afraid of almost no other marine life. And the venom released by their sharp spines can cause extremely painful stings to humans, or even fatalities for some people with heart problems or allergic reactions."