45centimeters(18inches) long

Deadly Predator

Lionfishpreyonmorethan100species,andonelionfishcaneat5,000fishina year.

Theycanliveupto15yearsinthe wild.

Lionfishreproduceatarapidrate.Afemalecanproducemorethantwomillioneggsperyear.Fewpredatorsconsumetheeggsbecausetheyarefilledwithaharmfulchemical.Theeggshatchafteronlytwodays.Thebabylionfishwillbereadytoreproduceinlessthana year.

Lionfishareprotectedbyvenomousspinesattachedtotheir fins.

presentinvasion zone

expectedinvasion zone

North
America

South 
America

Pacific
Ocean

Atlantic
Ocean

LionfishhaveinvadedtheEastCoast,theCaribbean,andtheGulfof Mexico.

Theyareexpectedtocontinuespreadingsouthtoward Brazil.

Invasivelionfishcanseverelydamagecoral reefs.

before invasion

after invasion