1 00:00:01,920 --> 00:00:06,520 Speaker 1: Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio, Hey 2 00:00:06,559 --> 00:00:11,240 Speaker 1: brain Stuff Lauren Vogel bomb here. The lionfish, also called 3 00:00:11,240 --> 00:00:15,480 Speaker 1: the turkey fish and firefish, is striking with its warning 4 00:00:15,600 --> 00:00:19,760 Speaker 1: colored maroon, brown and white stripes, elegant fan like fins 5 00:00:19,840 --> 00:00:23,279 Speaker 1: that resemble a lion's mane or turkey's tail when fanned out, 6 00:00:23,760 --> 00:00:28,840 Speaker 1: and the seeming mohawk of sharp spikes. But this pretty fish, 7 00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:34,199 Speaker 1: popular ornamental species among saltwater aquarium enthusiasts, has also managed 8 00:00:34,200 --> 00:00:38,360 Speaker 1: to infiltrate tropical waters worldwide, where it's been greatly reducing 9 00:00:38,479 --> 00:00:43,320 Speaker 1: native fish populations and thus wreaking havoc on delicate reef ecosystems. 10 00:00:44,479 --> 00:00:47,960 Speaker 1: While no one can pinpoint exactly how this alien invasion 11 00:00:47,960 --> 00:00:52,120 Speaker 1: occurred beyond the species native Indo Pacific region, the population 12 00:00:52,159 --> 00:00:55,240 Speaker 1: explosion is likely to have begun off the Atlantic coast 13 00:00:55,280 --> 00:00:58,960 Speaker 1: in the mid nineteen eighties, when some irresponsible aquarium owner 14 00:00:59,080 --> 00:01:03,360 Speaker 1: dumped unwanted lionfish into the wild. Never do that, by 15 00:01:03,400 --> 00:01:05,920 Speaker 1: the way, with any fish. It's cruel to the fish, 16 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:09,360 Speaker 1: bad for the ecosystem, and illegal in many places to boot. 17 00:01:10,560 --> 00:01:13,440 Speaker 1: Ocean currants and hurricanes have since aided the lionfish is 18 00:01:13,480 --> 00:01:16,800 Speaker 1: spread from Florida's Atlantic coast to the Bahamas, throughout the 19 00:01:16,840 --> 00:01:20,720 Speaker 1: Caribbean Sea, and into the Gulf of Mexico. They're mostly 20 00:01:20,760 --> 00:01:24,199 Speaker 1: found in warm tropical waters within a variety of habitats, 21 00:01:24,319 --> 00:01:27,560 Speaker 1: from rocky bottoms to coral and artificial reefs, and can 22 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:29,520 Speaker 1: be seen at depths of up to three hundred feet 23 00:01:29,640 --> 00:01:34,119 Speaker 1: or about ninety meters. We spoke by email with Alex Lawler, 24 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:37,039 Speaker 1: a senior aquarist at the Aquarium of the Pacific in 25 00:01:37,160 --> 00:01:41,400 Speaker 1: Long Beach, California. She said lionfish have been a problem 26 00:01:41,400 --> 00:01:44,080 Speaker 1: as an invasive species in the Atlantic Ocean since the 27 00:01:44,080 --> 00:01:48,760 Speaker 1: first sighting in Florida. An invasive species is a species 28 00:01:48,800 --> 00:01:51,160 Speaker 1: that's introduced to a new environment where they have little 29 00:01:51,200 --> 00:01:54,000 Speaker 1: to no predators and cause harm to the native species. 30 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 1: In the case of the lionfish, with no natural predators 31 00:01:56,880 --> 00:02:00,000 Speaker 1: within the Atlantic Ocean, they eat small fish and crustaceans, 32 00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:03,200 Speaker 1: often the juveniles of important commercial species such as snapper. 33 00:02:03,720 --> 00:02:06,840 Speaker 1: They're slow moving ambush predators, sneaking up on their prey 34 00:02:07,200 --> 00:02:11,200 Speaker 1: and use their large mouths to swallow prey hole. A 35 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:13,960 Speaker 1: line fish can expand its stomach more than thirty times 36 00:02:13,960 --> 00:02:17,400 Speaker 1: in volume when eating a large meal. It's also capable 37 00:02:17,440 --> 00:02:19,840 Speaker 1: of long term fasting and can go without food for 38 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:23,760 Speaker 1: more than twelve weeks. As for their natural predators in 39 00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:27,800 Speaker 1: the Indo Pacific and Red Sea, they include sharks, grouper, 40 00:02:28,040 --> 00:02:31,520 Speaker 1: large eels, frogfish, and scorpion fish, to whom they are 41 00:02:31,560 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 1: closely related. As an invasive species, it doesn't help matters 42 00:02:36,760 --> 00:02:40,040 Speaker 1: that lionfish start reproducing when they're less than a year old, 43 00:02:40,400 --> 00:02:43,600 Speaker 1: can lay up to thirty thousand eggs every four days 44 00:02:43,639 --> 00:02:46,720 Speaker 1: and can keep spawning year round, which means that they 45 00:02:46,760 --> 00:02:49,760 Speaker 1: can erase about eighty percent of a reef fairly quickly. 46 00:02:50,440 --> 00:02:53,800 Speaker 1: Research has shown that a rapid increase in lionfish coincided 47 00:02:53,840 --> 00:02:56,680 Speaker 1: with a sixty five percent native fish decline in the 48 00:02:56,680 --> 00:03:02,160 Speaker 1: Atlantic during just two year period. Lionfish are also venomous. 49 00:03:02,600 --> 00:03:05,520 Speaker 1: Their venom glands are located within a number of dorsal, 50 00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:10,120 Speaker 1: pelvic and anal spines, and the spines contain grooves filled 51 00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:13,360 Speaker 1: with tissue that can produce the venom. The spines have 52 00:03:13,480 --> 00:03:16,280 Speaker 1: to pierce human skin in order to transfer the venom 53 00:03:16,320 --> 00:03:19,480 Speaker 1: to a person. A lawler said, we've not heard of 54 00:03:19,520 --> 00:03:22,280 Speaker 1: any cases where lionfish sting has proven to be fatal. 55 00:03:22,760 --> 00:03:26,480 Speaker 1: A sting can cause extreme pain, sweating, respiratory distress, and 56 00:03:26,560 --> 00:03:29,560 Speaker 1: even paralysis that can last for days. The venom is 57 00:03:29,560 --> 00:03:32,320 Speaker 1: a combination of protein, a r muscular toxin, and an 58 00:03:32,400 --> 00:03:36,760 Speaker 1: arrow transmitter. If you're stung by lionfish, seek medical attention immediately. 59 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:41,960 Speaker 1: As with many other animals, the best and safest way 60 00:03:41,960 --> 00:03:45,360 Speaker 1: to enjoy seeing lionfish is to observe them from a distance. 61 00:03:45,880 --> 00:03:48,680 Speaker 1: The lawler said. Keep an eye out for their distinctive 62 00:03:48,680 --> 00:03:51,760 Speaker 1: coloration when spending time and environments known to be home 63 00:03:51,800 --> 00:03:55,320 Speaker 1: to lionfish. Be continuously observant of where you put your 64 00:03:55,320 --> 00:03:58,280 Speaker 1: hands and feet in the water, as lionfish often like 65 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:02,720 Speaker 1: to rest along ledges and crevices during the day. It 66 00:04:02,920 --> 00:04:05,440 Speaker 1: is legal to keep lionfish's pets here in the US, 67 00:04:05,760 --> 00:04:08,800 Speaker 1: though as always read up on the species before adding 68 00:04:08,800 --> 00:04:11,960 Speaker 1: one to your tank. The lawler said, it is illegal 69 00:04:12,000 --> 00:04:14,440 Speaker 1: to release a lion fish into the wild. There are 70 00:04:14,480 --> 00:04:16,960 Speaker 1: a few kinds of lionfish available for purchase at most 71 00:04:16,960 --> 00:04:19,280 Speaker 1: pet stores, with some of the best species for home 72 00:04:19,360 --> 00:04:23,839 Speaker 1: enthusiasts including the Russell's lionfish, spot finned lionfish, and dwarf 73 00:04:23,839 --> 00:04:27,560 Speaker 1: fuzzy lionfish. While most of these fish have the same needs, 74 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:30,960 Speaker 1: they are different sizes and will require different tank sizes. 75 00:04:31,520 --> 00:04:34,599 Speaker 1: Being rather aggressive predators, lionfish should not be put in 76 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:37,600 Speaker 1: a tank with any smaller fish, crabs, or shrimp because 77 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:42,000 Speaker 1: they will likely devour them. All that being said, people 78 00:04:42,200 --> 00:04:46,200 Speaker 1: do eat lionfish. People can safely catch, cook, and consume 79 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:49,799 Speaker 1: lionfish as long as they avoid those venom producing spines. 80 00:04:50,520 --> 00:04:53,440 Speaker 1: Lionfish apparently have a very mild white meat that can 81 00:04:53,480 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 1: be prepared in several ways, from grilling to blackened to 82 00:04:56,720 --> 00:05:00,120 Speaker 1: being served raw as sushi. The lawler noted that somepla 83 00:05:00,160 --> 00:05:02,360 Speaker 1: is in the Caribbean where lion fish are found, are 84 00:05:02,360 --> 00:05:05,960 Speaker 1: also hot spots for sigwatara fish poisoning, which is an 85 00:05:05,960 --> 00:05:08,600 Speaker 1: illness that humans can get by eating reef fish that 86 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:12,040 Speaker 1: are contaminated with the sigwatara toxin, which is produced by 87 00:05:12,040 --> 00:05:14,920 Speaker 1: microorganisms that live in the water and gets passed up 88 00:05:14,920 --> 00:05:18,760 Speaker 1: the food chain. As with any fishing or other food collection, 89 00:05:19,040 --> 00:05:21,960 Speaker 1: always consult best practices and local guides to learn how 90 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:26,960 Speaker 1: to obtain and eat foods safely. The Florida Fish and 91 00:05:27,040 --> 00:05:31,880 Speaker 1: Wildlife Conservation Commission or f WC, has numerous incentive programs 92 00:05:31,920 --> 00:05:36,960 Speaker 1: to entice recreational and commercial scuba divers to harvest invasive lionfish. 93 00:05:37,760 --> 00:05:41,000 Speaker 1: One of the most successful is a derby, where spearfishing 94 00:05:41,000 --> 00:05:43,839 Speaker 1: divers spend a day working together to remove as many 95 00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:46,839 Speaker 1: lion fish as they can, with the largest Derby's awarding 96 00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:50,479 Speaker 1: prizes to the teams or individuals who catch the biggest, smallest, 97 00:05:50,680 --> 00:05:59,200 Speaker 1: or most lionfish. Today's episode was written by Wendy Bonan 98 00:05:59,240 --> 00:06:01,240 Speaker 1: and produced by tile Or Clay or More on this 99 00:06:01,360 --> 00:06:04,200 Speaker 1: amounts of other topics, visit how stuffworks dot com. Brain 100 00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:06,760 Speaker 1: Stuff is production of I Heart Radio or more podcasts. 101 00:06:06,839 --> 00:06:09,839 Speaker 1: My heart Radio visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 102 00:06:09,880 --> 00:06:11,680 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.