(12 votes, average: 4.17 out of 5)
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They are calling it the prefect predator. It gulps fish in seconds. It can destroy ecosystems. Huh? Are sharks that hungry now?
Many media outlets are calling for immediate action against an imported species into the Caribbean Seas. The Volitan Lionfish (Pterois volitans) has been unfortunately introduced into the wild, what they suggest, by hobbyists who just couldn’t take care of them anymore. They continue to say that because there are not any natural predators who can control their population, the whole fishing industry will be experiencing a hit like never seen before.
Hmm… you figure with that many marine scientists that are now a part of this ‘Caribbean catastrophe’, we would see some normal resolutions. But no, we get a suggestion that the only way to even control them is to over fish them for the seafood industry. Fine, but how does that solve the problem where according to the reports, this fish just gulps fish for breakfast.
“Lionfish are eating their way through the (Atlantic) reefs like a plague of locusts,” said Mark Hixon, a coral reef ecology expert at Oregon State University. “This may well become the most devastating marine invasion in history
Scientists fear the lionfish will kill off helpful species, such as algae- eating parrotfish, allowing seaweed to overtake reefs
Really? Seaweed? You think that there isn’t any docile, algae-eating, less proliferous fish species that can mabe take control of that seaweed? I know of at least 3 species that could replace the parrotfish in question (that is if it ever came down to it that the parrotfish became extinct in this region). So why are marine biologists offering these types of solutions? Are they too scared to take some risks or are they just following the general rule that applies to all foreign species?
We as hobbyists have done a LOT to propel research of marine animals, fish, inverts and coral alike. We as hobbyists, are like ‘marine biologists lite’. Like ‘diet’ scientists. With lots of practice around our tanks, utilizing them as lab experiments. It is very difficult to produce a successful experiment where fish and coral from many different places in the world are intertwined and forced to exist in cohesion. Those who exceed and succeed could easily call themselves MB Lite.
So having said all of that, I suggest to all reading this in respect to this ‘catastrophe’, you all (marine biologists) should ask a few well experienced hobbyists on what their suggestions may be in actually solving this potential problem. Why doesn’t anyone ask Bob Fenner or Anthony Calfo? What about many other successful reefers that reside in the world? A modest reefer like myself could easily throw a couple of cents their way. Could introducing Hawaii’s yellow tangs or convict tangs help with the fish numbers? What about introducing their natural predators such as eels, frogfish and scorpionfish? Could they displace the lionfish population while keeping smaller fish to reproduce?
Just ask yourself this.. if this lionfish can exist in other parts of the world without ruining their ecosystems, then why can’t we emulate the same here?
Trained by the thirteenth ring master of the Sian Xiuang Coral Temple. Currently is apprenticing the art of Acropora shaping in the ancient tradition of Ninja Fragging. Known as the SPS hero!
Nice provocative comments as ever, but I’m not sure I agree with you this time…
Introduced species can do major damage (see Australian marsupials or the devastation of bird diversity in places like New Zealand) and trying to tackle it with more introduced species hasn’t worked much better.
I completely understand why we shouldn’t be introducing new species, as we don’t have any way to control them afterwards.
BUT, we as reefers have done so much already to show what fish can or cannot do in an enclosed environment. How many reefers are there in the world, and how many of those are well experienced. We can help and can introduce a species into the region to help.
Fish eggs travel a long time before settling into a region of the ocean. There are always chances of them traveling in a ocean current well beyond their normal territories. This happens all the time with fish and corals. One big example of that is this: if you ever watched the Discovery series Rajat Ampat, you would have seen how corals have managed to spread out into different regions of the world using currents.
Knowing all of this, we must do something proactive such as introducing a docile, algae eating, low breeding species into the Caribbean. Their reefs will struggle to populate with fish if nothing is done.
what eats lion fish in nature?
Eels, frogfish and scorpionfish.
The example used of eggs traveling a current is not relevant in my opinion – that seems to be natural selection, not deliberate human inter(ference)action. True that the lionfish, kind of like the Channa argus, may be introduced as a result of irresponsible people, but I do not believe that the solution to a problem with invasive species is to introduce another invasive (read: non-indigenous / exotic) species.
Let’s assume the introduced eels eat the lionfish, with prejudice… then what do they eat? Do they die? Do they take the place of the lionfish? Perhaps they don’t eat the lionfish, so now we have 2 invasive predators.
Good write up, though I wholeheartedly disagree. Also, what are the 3 species you believe could “replace the parrotfish”?
Hey L,
I never mentioned to introduce an invasive species. That would be very counter productive. I am rational enough to know that you can’t solve a problem with another problem.
What I propose is to introduce a species like an eel, who will control and not decimate the lionfish population. You have to place another species of fish on top of that fish hierarchy. We used the example of an eel because it is possibly a slow grower and populator. You would only introduce it when you are 100% certain that it hunts lionfish, and not something else. Experiments can easily be done to prove that.. in an open and closed ecosystem (lab).
As for the species that could replace the parrotfish, they would be (like already mentioned) yellow and convict tangs, and possibly another species of bass. If you add diversity, you will add food choices for the lionfish. It is not the same as for instance intruducing insects or reptiles to control other species of bugs. We know that the tangs eat only algae, and nothing else.. so why don’t we help the parrotfish who are apparently getting eaten for breakfast.
Just my take on it, as I am sure it could be done.
Every time I hear about a foreign animal being introduced into a population I always hear about all the damage it does. Does anyone know of any reports where a foreign species was introduced into a population and it didn’t have an ecological impact? I guess if this happened it probable that no one would report on it. Seems to me like a good solution would be to capture them and put them back into the hobby, thus lessening the impact of collecting them in other areas around the world.
Good point John. Instead of shipping them from the Indian and Pacific oceans, we can almost get them locally.
Introducing a species to control another species just doesn’t work and it creates other problems as well. I can’t think of any other time that it’s worked. It would be cheaper and easier to put a bounty on the lion fish in that area.
The idea wasn’t proposed to control the lionfish, but to add to the buffet table already set out. Sure a bount could be made against that fish, but how much can you dish out? You would have to do an amazing marketing campaign to showcase the fish.. which again is not something anyone is willing to do.
Well haveing seen these fish all over the world, im sure there is a pandemic going on, i had one of these in my marine fishtank and it grew huge easily a foot in like 6 months and also this 1 fish consumed a lot of food so i can emperthise, if they taste good and are sustainible why not eat them