Abstract
Caribbean lionfish (Pterois spp.) are considered the most heavily impacting invasive marine vertebrate ever recorded. However, current management is largely inadequate, relying on opportunistic culling by recreational SCUBA divers. Culling efficiency could be greatly improved by exploiting natural aggregations, but to date this behaviour has only been recorded anecdotally, and the drivers are unknown. We found aggregations to be common in situ, but detected no conspecific attraction through visual or olfactory cues in laboratory experiments. Aggregating individuals were on average larger, but showed no further differences in morphology or life history. However, using visual assessments and 3D modelling we show lionfish prefer broad-scale, but avoid fine-scale, habitat complexity. We therefore suggest that lionfish aggregations are coincidental based on individuals’ mutual attraction to similar reef structure to maximise hunting efficiency. Using this knowledge, artificial aggregation devices might be developed to concentrate lionfish densities and thus improve culling efficiency.
Highlights
Since their introduction in the early 1980s1, lionfish (Pterois volitans and P. miles) have spread throughout the western Atlantic with devastating impacts on the region’s coral reefs[2]
One possible driver of lionfish aggregations is social attraction, which may be for cooperative hunting, spawning[23], minimising the chance of predation[24] or pooling experiences to solve problems[25]
Lionfish aggregation behaviour had only been observed anecdotally and little was known about its drivers
Summary
Since their introduction in the early 1980s1, lionfish (Pterois volitans and P. miles) have spread throughout the western Atlantic with devastating impacts on the region’s coral reefs[2]. Groups of lionfish have been observed throughout the invaded range[10,16,17] and it has been noted that aggregating individuals often appear larger than solitary individuals[16,17]. By exploiting this natural behaviour and artificially stimulating aggregations, culling or trapping efficiency could be improved. Zebrafish will even aggregate with robotic fish that mimic their shape and movement[29] Another possible aggregation driver is habitat preference. Lionfish have been anecdotally reported to be found in more complex habitat[10,16,17], this has not been determined quantitatively
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