Journal ArticleDOI
Worst case scenario: potential long-term effects of invasive predatory lionfish (Pterois volitans) on Atlantic and Caribbean coral-reef communities
Mark A. Albins,Mark A. Hixon +1 more
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TLDR
A possible “worst case scenario” in which the direct and indirect effects of lionfish could combine with the impacts of preexisting stressors—especially overfishing—and cause substantial deleterious changes in coral-reef communities is described.Abstract:
The Pacific red lionfish has recently invaded Western Atlantic and Caribbean coral reefs, and may become one of the most ecologically harmful marine fish introductions to date. Lionfish possess a broad suite of traits that makes them particularly successful invaders and strong negative interactors with native fauna, including defensive venomous spines, cryptic form, color and behavior, habitat generality, high competitive ability, low parasite load, efficient predation, rapid growth, and high reproductive rates. With an eye on the future, we describe a possible "worst case scenario" in which the direct and indirect effects of lionfish could combine with the impacts of preexisting stressors—especially overfishing—and cause sub- stantial deleterious changes in coral-reef communi- ties. We also discuss management actions that could be taken to minimize these potential effects by, first, developing targeted lionfish fisheries and local removals, and second, enhancing native biotic resistance, particularly via marine reserves that could conserve and foster potential natural enemies of this invader. Ultimately, the lionfish invasion will be limited either by the lionfish starving—the worst end to the worst case scenario—or by some combination of native pathogens, parasites, predators, and competitors controlling the abundance of lionfish.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
The future of hyperdiverse tropical ecosystems
Jos Barlow,Filipe França,Filipe França,Toby A. Gardner,Christina C. Hicks,Gareth D. Lennox,Erika Berenguer,Erika Berenguer,Leandro Castello,Evan P. Economo,Joice Ferreira,Benoit Guénard,Cecília Gontijo Leal,Victoria J. Isaac,Alexander C. Lees,Catherine L. Parr,Catherine L. Parr,Catherine L. Parr,Shaun K. Wilson,Paul Young,Nicholas A. J. Graham +20 more
TL;DR: The immense biodiversity of tropical ecosystems is threatened by multiple interacting local and global stressors that can only be addressed by the concerted efforts of grassroots organizations, researchers, national governments and the international community.
Book
Status and trends of Caribbean coral reefs : 1970-2012
TL;DR: With only about one-sixth of the original coral cover left, most Caribbean coral reefs may disappear in the next 20 years, primarily due to the loss of grazers in the region, according to the latest report, the status and trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970-2012 as mentioned in this paper.
Journal ArticleDOI
Invasive lionfish drive Atlantic coral reef fish declines.
TL;DR: The response of native fish communities to predation by lionfish populations on nine coral reefs off New Providence Island, Bahamas is documented to have long-term negative implications for the structure of Atlantic marine communities, as well as the societies and economies that depend on them.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Ecological Role of Sharks on Coral Reefs
George Roff,Christopher Doropoulos,Alice Rogers,Yves-Marie Bozec,Nils C. Krueck,Eleanor Aurellado,Mark A. Priest,Chico L. Birrell,Peter J. Mumby +8 more
TL;DR: The ecological roles of sharks on coral reefs are explored and it is found that most reef-associated shark species do not act as apex predators but instead function as mesopredators along with a diverse group of reef fish.
Journal ArticleDOI
Predatory fish invaders: Insights from Indo-Pacific lionfish in the western Atlantic and Caribbean
TL;DR: This work takes stock of recently accumulated knowledge about lionfish ecology and behaviour and examines how this information is contributing to general understanding of the patterns and processes underpinning marine predator invasions, and to the specific issue of lionfish management.
References
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Journal ArticleDOI
Mangrove use by the invasive lionfish Pterois volitans
Andrew B. Barbour,Meredith L. Montgomery,Alecia A. Adamson,Edgardo Díaz-Ferguson,Brian R. Silliman +4 more
TL;DR: It is demonstrated that lionfish colonize and feed in mangrove habitat in the Bahamas, a major conservation concern, as this top predator occurs at higher densities and forages more successfully than in its native range.
Journal ArticleDOI
Distributions of Indo-Pacific lionfishes Pterois spp. in their native ranges : implications for the Atlantic invasion
Michel Kulbicki,J. Beets,Pascale Chabanet,Katherine Cure,Emily S. Darling,Sergio R. Floeter,R. Galzin,Alison Green,Mireille Harmelin-Vivien,Mark A. Hixon,Yves Letourneur,T. L. de Loma,Tim R. McClanahan,Jennifer L. McIlwain,Gérard Mou-Tham,R. Myers,Jennifer K. O'Leary,Serge Planes,Laurent Vigliola,Laurent Wantiez +19 more
TL;DR: It is found that lionfish in their native Indo-Pacific range are unevenly distributed, with higher densities in the Indian Ocean than in the Pacific, and densities increase significantly with increasing latitude, and are significantly higher in continental areas than around islands.
Journal ArticleDOI
Predation rates of Indo-Pacific lionfish on Bahamian coral reefs
TL;DR: The first estimates of rates of predation by lionfish are derived from field observations on natural reefs around New Providence, Bahamas, suggesting that using published predation rates from the native range to predict the impacts of lionfish on native Caribbean fish could lead to severe underestimation of these impacts.
Journal ArticleDOI
Indirect effects of an exploited predator on recruitment of coral-reef fishes
TL;DR: The results indicate that indirect, nonlethal interactions in natural systems can have strong cascading effects even at high trophic levels and in high-diversity food webs and also indicate that the effects of fishing are complex and difficult to predict.
Journal ArticleDOI
Experiments and observations on food consumption, growth and starvation in Dendrochirus brachypterus and Pterois volitans (Pteroinae, Scorpaenidae)
TL;DR: Experiments with naive adult lionfish showed that their selection of prey species is a learned process, vital to survival during growth during growth in the prey-fishes' rich habitat of coral reefs.
Related Papers (5)
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