WEBVTT - How Do Lionfish Work? 0:00:01.920 --> 0:00:06.520 Welcome to brain Stuff, a production of iHeart Radio, Hey 0:00:06.559 --> 0:00:11.240 brain Stuff Lauren Vogel bomb here. The lionfish, also called 0:00:11.240 --> 0:00:15.480 the turkey fish and firefish, is striking with its warning 0:00:15.600 --> 0:00:19.760 colored maroon, brown and white stripes, elegant fan like fins 0:00:19.840 --> 0:00:23.279 that resemble a lion's mane or turkey's tail when fanned out, 0:00:23.760 --> 0:00:28.840 and the seeming mohawk of sharp spikes. But this pretty fish, 0:00:29.240 --> 0:00:34.199 popular ornamental species among saltwater aquarium enthusiasts, has also managed 0:00:34.200 --> 0:00:38.360 to infiltrate tropical waters worldwide, where it's been greatly reducing 0:00:38.479 --> 0:00:43.320 native fish populations and thus wreaking havoc on delicate reef ecosystems. 0:00:44.479 --> 0:00:47.960 While no one can pinpoint exactly how this alien invasion 0:00:47.960 --> 0:00:52.120 occurred beyond the species native Indo Pacific region, the population 0:00:52.159 --> 0:00:55.240 explosion is likely to have begun off the Atlantic coast 0:00:55.280 --> 0:00:58.960 in the mid nineteen eighties, when some irresponsible aquarium owner 0:00:59.080 --> 0:01:03.360 dumped unwanted lionfish into the wild. Never do that, by 0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:05.920 the way, with any fish. It's cruel to the fish, 0:01:06.160 --> 0:01:09.360 bad for the ecosystem, and illegal in many places to boot. 0:01:10.560 --> 0:01:13.440 Ocean currants and hurricanes have since aided the lionfish is 0:01:13.480 --> 0:01:16.800 spread from Florida's Atlantic coast to the Bahamas, throughout the 0:01:16.840 --> 0:01:20.720 Caribbean Sea, and into the Gulf of Mexico. They're mostly 0:01:20.760 --> 0:01:24.199 found in warm tropical waters within a variety of habitats, 0:01:24.319 --> 0:01:27.560 from rocky bottoms to coral and artificial reefs, and can 0:01:27.600 --> 0:01:29.520 be seen at depths of up to three hundred feet 0:01:29.640 --> 0:01:34.119 or about ninety meters. We spoke by email with Alex Lawler, 0:01:34.360 --> 0:01:37.039 a senior aquarist at the Aquarium of the Pacific in 0:01:37.160 --> 0:01:41.400 Long Beach, California. She said lionfish have been a problem 0:01:41.400 --> 0:01:44.080 as an invasive species in the Atlantic Ocean since the 0:01:44.080 --> 0:01:48.760 first sighting in Florida. An invasive species is a species 0:01:48.800 --> 0:01:51.160 that's introduced to a new environment where they have little 0:01:51.200 --> 0:01:54.000 to no predators and cause harm to the native species. 0:01:54.360 --> 0:01:56.840 In the case of the lionfish, with no natural predators 0:01:56.880 --> 0:02:00.000 within the Atlantic Ocean, they eat small fish and crustaceans, 0:02:00.120 --> 0:02:03.200 often the juveniles of important commercial species such as snapper. 0:02:03.720 --> 0:02:06.840 They're slow moving ambush predators, sneaking up on their prey 0:02:07.200 --> 0:02:11.200 and use their large mouths to swallow prey hole. A 0:02:11.240 --> 0:02:13.960 line fish can expand its stomach more than thirty times 0:02:13.960 --> 0:02:17.400 in volume when eating a large meal. It's also capable 0:02:17.440 --> 0:02:19.840 of long term fasting and can go without food for 0:02:19.880 --> 0:02:23.760 more than twelve weeks. As for their natural predators in 0:02:23.840 --> 0:02:27.800 the Indo Pacific and Red Sea, they include sharks, grouper, 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:31.520 large eels, frogfish, and scorpion fish, to whom they are 0:02:31.560 --> 0:02:36.720 closely related. As an invasive species, it doesn't help matters 0:02:36.760 --> 0:02:40.040 that lionfish start reproducing when they're less than a year old, 0:02:40.400 --> 0:02:43.600 can lay up to thirty thousand eggs every four days 0:02:43.639 --> 0:02:46.720 and can keep spawning year round, which means that they 0:02:46.760 --> 0:02:49.760 can erase about eighty percent of a reef fairly quickly. 0:02:50.440 --> 0:02:53.800 Research has shown that a rapid increase in lionfish coincided 0:02:53.840 --> 0:02:56.680 with a sixty five percent native fish decline in the 0:02:56.680 --> 0:03:02.160 Atlantic during just two year period. Lionfish are also venomous. 0:03:02.600 --> 0:03:05.520 Their venom glands are located within a number of dorsal, 0:03:05.680 --> 0:03:10.120 pelvic and anal spines, and the spines contain grooves filled 0:03:10.120 --> 0:03:13.360 with tissue that can produce the venom. The spines have 0:03:13.480 --> 0:03:16.280 to pierce human skin in order to transfer the venom 0:03:16.320 --> 0:03:19.480 to a person. A lawler said, we've not heard of 0:03:19.520 --> 0:03:22.280 any cases where lionfish sting has proven to be fatal. 0:03:22.760 --> 0:03:26.480 A sting can cause extreme pain, sweating, respiratory distress, and 0:03:26.560 --> 0:03:29.560 even paralysis that can last for days. The venom is 0:03:29.560 --> 0:03:32.320 a combination of protein, a r muscular toxin, and an 0:03:32.400 --> 0:03:36.760 arrow transmitter. If you're stung by lionfish, seek medical attention immediately. 0:03:38.600 --> 0:03:41.960 As with many other animals, the best and safest way 0:03:41.960 --> 0:03:45.360 to enjoy seeing lionfish is to observe them from a distance. 0:03:45.880 --> 0:03:48.680 The lawler said. Keep an eye out for their distinctive 0:03:48.680 --> 0:03:51.760 coloration when spending time and environments known to be home 0:03:51.800 --> 0:03:55.320 to lionfish. Be continuously observant of where you put your 0:03:55.320 --> 0:03:58.280 hands and feet in the water, as lionfish often like 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:02.720 to rest along ledges and crevices during the day. It 0:04:02.920 --> 0:04:05.440 is legal to keep lionfish's pets here in the US, 0:04:05.760 --> 0:04:08.800 though as always read up on the species before adding 0:04:08.800 --> 0:04:11.960 one to your tank. The lawler said, it is illegal 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:14.440 to release a lion fish into the wild. There are 0:04:14.480 --> 0:04:16.960 a few kinds of lionfish available for purchase at most 0:04:16.960 --> 0:04:19.280 pet stores, with some of the best species for home 0:04:19.360 --> 0:04:23.839 enthusiasts including the Russell's lionfish, spot finned lionfish, and dwarf 0:04:23.839 --> 0:04:27.560 fuzzy lionfish. While most of these fish have the same needs, 0:04:27.600 --> 0:04:30.960 they are different sizes and will require different tank sizes. 0:04:31.520 --> 0:04:34.599 Being rather aggressive predators, lionfish should not be put in 0:04:34.600 --> 0:04:37.600 a tank with any smaller fish, crabs, or shrimp because 0:04:37.600 --> 0:04:42.000 they will likely devour them. All that being said, people 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:46.200 do eat lionfish. People can safely catch, cook, and consume 0:04:46.279 --> 0:04:49.799 lionfish as long as they avoid those venom producing spines. 0:04:50.520 --> 0:04:53.440 Lionfish apparently have a very mild white meat that can 0:04:53.480 --> 0:04:56.520 be prepared in several ways, from grilling to blackened to 0:04:56.720 --> 0:05:00.120 being served raw as sushi. The lawler noted that somepla 0:05:00.160 --> 0:05:02.360 is in the Caribbean where lion fish are found, are 0:05:02.360 --> 0:05:05.960 also hot spots for sigwatara fish poisoning, which is an 0:05:05.960 --> 0:05:08.600 illness that humans can get by eating reef fish that 0:05:08.640 --> 0:05:12.040 are contaminated with the sigwatara toxin, which is produced by 0:05:12.040 --> 0:05:14.920 microorganisms that live in the water and gets passed up 0:05:14.920 --> 0:05:18.760 the food chain. As with any fishing or other food collection, 0:05:19.040 --> 0:05:21.960 always consult best practices and local guides to learn how 0:05:22.000 --> 0:05:26.960 to obtain and eat foods safely. The Florida Fish and 0:05:27.040 --> 0:05:31.880 Wildlife Conservation Commission or f WC, has numerous incentive programs 0:05:31.920 --> 0:05:36.960 to entice recreational and commercial scuba divers to harvest invasive lionfish. 0:05:37.760 --> 0:05:41.000 One of the most successful is a derby, where spearfishing 0:05:41.000 --> 0:05:43.839 divers spend a day working together to remove as many 0:05:43.880 --> 0:05:46.839 lion fish as they can, with the largest Derby's awarding 0:05:46.839 --> 0:05:50.479 prizes to the teams or individuals who catch the biggest, smallest, 0:05:50.680 --> 0:05:59.200 or most lionfish. Today's episode was written by Wendy Bonan 0:05:59.240 --> 0:06:01.240 and produced by tile Or Clay or More on this 0:06:01.360 --> 0:06:04.200 amounts of other topics, visit how stuffworks dot com. Brain 0:06:04.240 --> 0:06:06.760 Stuff is production of I Heart Radio or more podcasts. 0:06:06.839 --> 0:06:09.839 My heart Radio visit the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:11.680 or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.