Lionfish and Tiger sharks and Box Jellies oh my!

Published 11 years agoon March 31, 2015

Lionfish are from the Indio-pacific, but they are now found in the Caribbean Sea and the Eastern Atlantic and are considered an invasive species.

Scientists think some home hobbyists bought these beautiful unsuspecting fish for their tanks and then the Lionfish either outgrew their tanks, (this fish grows super fast!) or ate the other specimens so the owners decided to release them into the ocean. The second theory is some of these fish found their way to the ocean during Hurricane Andrew in 1992 because it destroyed an Aquarium in southern Florida releasing 6 fish into Biscayne Bay. Scientists found most of the Lionfish tested have come from this same genetic pool.

The lionfish is a venomous fish. The difference between venom and poison is this, venom has to be injected into your bloodstream to be harmful, like through a Lionfish’s spines, a Banded Sea Krait’s fangs or a scorpion’s sting. Poison on the other hand has to be eaten or drunk, or touched, in some cases absorbed through the skin, like if you ate a puffer fish, touched a poison arrow frog or ate a poisonous plant.

Lionfish are considered ambush predators. This fish literally floats around the coral reefs waving its fins among the schools of larval fish and attacks so fast that the other fish don’t even realize what happened. A lionfish will eat anything that it can fit into its wide gaping mouth – it is able to eat things the size of itself. These Lionfish are munching their way through the coral reefs eating every larval fish in sight! Except for the occasional curious shark predator, Lionfish are free to flourish.

Organizations have started having Lionfish Derbies. Divers are challenged to catch as many Lionfish as they can. YES, there is even a Lionfish Cookbook!

Lions are one of the top terrestrial ambush predators on our planet. It’s ironic that a fish with the same name is an oceanic ambush predator as well. (I ain’t Lion to you!) I mean who thought a fish could cause so much trouble?

Find out more about marine life with Pamela at www.gotoceans.com.

Photo: Malcolm Nobbs

Pamela Jackson

Learning about marine animals has been Pamela's lifelong passion. As a young child she won a goldfish at a state fair. Her parents taught her how to care for "Goldie". Pamela fed and cleaned Goldie's bowl, watched her swim around, and even took her fish to school! Pamela moved to California to pursue her passion for the ocean. She graduated with honors and a degree from the Aquarium & Aquaculture Science Program - the only accredited program of its kind. A Professional Aquarist and children's picture book author, Pamela contributes her expertise to the popular global 'Got Oceans?®' education campaign that can be found at Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Got Oceans?® websites. A national featured speaker at venues such as ExplorOcean in Newport Beach, CA and the 2013 Presidents' Round Table at Saddleback College in Mission Viejo, CA, Pamela loves to work and volunteer at public and private aquariums to help teach people about the ocean and its inhabitants. Passionate, committed, and connected with a large and growing audience, Pamela is a voice for the ocean's inhabitants sharing her knowledge with the world... because the ocean matters!