Abstract
Lionfish (Pterois volitans and P. miles) have become a major concern in the western Atlantic and Caribbean since their introduction in the 1980s. Invasive lionfish can reach very high population densities on coral reefs in their invaded range, yet there are few data from their native range in the Indo-Pacific for comparison. We compiled data on the geographical distribution and density of Indo-Pacific lionfishes in their native ranges from published and unpublished under - water visual censuses and field collections. We found that lionfish in their native Indo-Pacific range are unevenly distributed, with higher densities in the Indian Ocean than in the Pacific. Lionfish densities increase significantly with increasing latitude, and are significantly higher in continental areas than around islands. In the Indo-Pacific, lionfishes are found not only on reefs but also on soft bottoms and in nearshore habitats such as seagrass beds and mangroves, and near estuaries. Native lionfish can be found at depths greater than 75 m. Because lionfish can be cryptic and secretive, we estimate that only ~1/8 of Indo-Pacific lionfishes are detected during general underwater visual censuses. In the Pacific Ocean, the relative abundance of lionfish in the catch of reef-fish larvae is of the same order of magnitude as the relative abundance of adult lionfish within reef fish assemblages. Overall the observed densities of lionfishes in the Indo-Pacific are much lower (max. 26.3 fish ha-1) than the densities reported in their invaded Atlantic range (max. 400 fish ha-1). We found no effects of fishing or pollution on the densities of lionfishes.
Highlights
Invasive species are widely considered to be a major threat to native ecosystems from the perspectives of ecology (Molnar et al 2008, Lambertini et al 2011), evolution (Mooney & Cleland 2001), and economics (Pimentel et al 2005)
P. volitans, the primary species invading western Atlantic and Caribbean coral reefs, is restricted to the Pacific Ocean, unlike P. antennata and P. radiata, which occur throughout the entire Indo-Pacific
Our macro-ecological approach examined the distribution of lionfish of the genus Pterois in their native Indo-Pacific range to facilitate comparisons with their invaded Atlantic range
Summary
Invasive species are widely considered to be a major threat to native ecosystems from the perspectives of ecology (Molnar et al 2008, Lambertini et al 2011), evolution (Mooney & Cleland 2001), and economics (Pimentel et al 2005). 2 species of lionfish (Pterois volitans and P. miles) native to the Indo-Pacific (Fig. 1) have become invasive species in the western Atlantic and Caribbean (Hare & Whitfield 2003, Morris & Whitfield 2009). These 2 species rapidly expanded their initial ranges off Florida (Whitfield et al 2002, Freshwater et al 2009), and inhabit most of the region between Cape Hatteras (North Carolina) to the north and Venezuela to. Information on lionfishes in the invaded regions is rapidly expanding, with studies focused on invasive lionfish distribution and abundance (Whitfield et al 2002, 2007, Schofield 2009, 2010, Darling et al 2011), reproduction (Ruiz-Carus et al 2006, Morris et al 2011), larval duration (Ahrenholz & Morris 2010), population genetics (Hamner et al 2007, Freshwater et al 2009), food habits (Albins & Hixon 2008, Morris & Akins 2009, Côté & Maljkovic 2010, Muñoz et al 2011), and ecological impacts (Albins & Hixon 2008, 2011).
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