Reefs reeling as ferocious lionfish invade Gulf of Mexico By Austin American-Statesman, adapted by Newsela staff Jun.

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1 Reefs reeling as ferocious lionfish invade Gulf of Mexico By Austin American-Statesman, adapted by Newsela staff Jun. 12, :00 AM A lionfish in a picture taken at the Zoo Schnbrunn, Vienna, Austria. GALVESTON, Texas It sounds like something from a horror movie: A beautiful species of fish, but with venomous spines and a ferocious appetite, sweeps into the Gulf of Mexico and gobbles up everything in its path. Unfortunately for the native fish and mollusks it s eating, this attack is not taking place on the big screen. Lionfish, a maroon-and-white striped native of the South Pacific, first showed up off the coast of southern Florida in Most likely, someone dumped a few out of a home fish tank. Since then, the fish have swept up the Eastern seaboard and down to the Bahamas. Lionfish breed frequently and have no natural enemies. Thanks to that, they now are more common in the Bahamas than their home waters. The invasive lionfish have been nearly a perfect predator, says Martha Klitzkie, who works at the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) in Key Largo, Florida. They re moving into new areas and, when they get settled, the population increases pretty quickly. 1

2 Population Explosion, For Lionfish Anyway The lionfish population exploded in the Florida Keys and the Bahamas between 2004 and As lionfish populations rose, the number of native prey fish dropped. Some studies show that native prey fish populations in the Bahamas fell an average of 65 percent in just two years. Lionfish first appeared in the western Gulf of Mexico in Scientists spotted them in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. The Sanctuary is a protected area about 100 miles off the Texas coast. Now scuba divers spot them on coral heads nearly every time they explore a reef. It s kind of this impossible battle, says Michelle Johnston, a researcher at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in Galveston. When you think how many are out there, I don t think eradication is possible now. Lionfish are fascinating and beautiful. They grow to about 18 inches and have numerous venomous spines. Their stripes are like those of a zebra. They hang out near coral heads or underwater structures where reef fish flourish. They wait for prey fish to draw near, then gulp them down in a flash. The fish can reproduce within one year and a single female can pump out 2 million eggs a year. Lionfish live about 15 years on average. In the South Pacific, predators and disease keep lionfish in check. But here, other fish don t like them as food those feathery spines serve as do-not-touch warnings. The few groupers that have been spotted taste-testing lionfish have spit them back out. It s What s For Dinner In the NOAA Fisheries Science Center in Galveston, Johnston sorts through a rack of glass tubes. Each one contains the stuff found in the stomach of a lionfish collected in the Flower Garden Banks. The jar contains fish such as the bluehead wrasse, brown chromis, red night shrimp and mantis shrimp. The native fish have all been found in lionfish bellies. They re eating young fish that should be growing up, she says. They re also eating fish that the native species are supposed to be eating. Lionfish can eat anything that fits into their mouth. They even eat fish half their own size. They also eat important species, such as snapper and grouper. They re eating so much, that scientists say some are getting too fat. 2

3 They can live almost anywhere in the water. They like gaps and holes and can find them on anything from a coral head to a drilling platform to a sunken ship. Only temperature limits them a bit. The lionfish don t seem to go farther north than Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. As long as they have something to eat, they ll be there, Johnston says. Damselfish In Distress, Ditto Reefs So many lionfish can cause widespread problems, scientists warn. In the Gulf, lionfish are eating fish like damselfish and wrasse, which keep the reef clean. When you take fish away, coral gets smothered, the reef dies, and we lose larger fish, she says. It s a snowball effect of negativity. The only known way to keep lionfish in check here, scientists say, is man. That s why lionfish fishing tournaments are popping up around the Caribbean and the Gulf. Locals are encouraged to kill and gather the fish. In some places, including Belize, they cook them up. Klitzkie at REEF says they ll never be able to get rid of lionfish. controlled. But their numbers can be The tournaments have removed more than 12,000 lionfish since Back in the Gulf, researchers like Johnston have special permits that allow them to remove lionfish from the Flower Garden Banks. But they need more help. It s really an uphill battle, Johnston says. The second you stop, they come back. 3

4 Quiz 1. Which of the following sentences about lionfish is NOT CORRECT? (a) It is a native species of the Bahamas. (b) It is characterized by venomous spines. (c) It feeds on native fish species and mollusks. (d) Locals are killing and cooking them to cut back their population. 2. Select the paragraph from Population Explosion, For Lionfish Anyway that describes how lionfish attack its prey. 3. What is the connection between lionfish and coral reefs? (a) Lionfish mostly live in coral reefs. (b) Lionfish reproduce in coral reefs. (c) Lionfish help protect coral reefs. (d) Coral reefs are the best hiding spots of lionfish from predators. 4. Which of the following factors keeps a check on lionfish population in the South Pacific? (a) predators (b) scuba divers (c) high temperature (d) fishing tournaments 4

5 Answer Key 1. Which of the following sentences about lionfish is NOT CORRECT? (a) It is a native species of the Bahamas. (b) It is characterized by venomous spines. (c) It feeds on native fish species and mollusks. (d) Locals are killing and cooking them to cut back their population. 2. Select the paragraph from Population Explosion, For Lionfish Anyway that describes how lionfish attack its prey. 9 Lionfish are fascinating and beautiful. They grow to about 18 inches and have numerous venomous spines. Their stripes are like those of a zebra. They hang out near coral heads or underwater structures where reef fish flourish. They wait for prey fish to draw near, then gulp them down in a flash. 3. What is the connection between lionfish and coral reefs? (a) Lionfish mostly live in coral reefs. (b) Lionfish reproduce in coral reefs. (c) Lionfish help protect coral reefs. (d) Coral reefs are the best hiding spots of lionfish from predators. 4. Which of the following factors keeps a check on lionfish population in the South Pacific? (a) predators (b) scuba divers (c) high temperature (d) fishing tournaments 5