LiOn FiSh

Everything there is that is needed to

know…By :

Steven BuskaritzBri Beil

Summary:

The lion fish among many others are amazingly interesting creatures. They are native to the reefs and rocky crevices of the Indo-Pacific ocean. The lion fish has the ability to defend themselves with a venomous "sting" from their fins. It mainly feeds on fish and shrimp, by using their quick reflexes and they can range from 11.8 inches to 15, while weighing up to 2.6 lbs. They’re unique creatures, and their sting is painful to humans causing problems, all while being fatal to other marine animals.

Anatomy :

Physiology :

Taxonomy :

Ecology :

“The Red Lion Fish feeds mainly on small fish, shrimps, and crabs like most of the Pterois. Studies showed that one Lion Fish can eat as much as 8.2 times its body weight in one year. It uses it very long pectoral fins to trap small creatures into a corner, they usually only feed at night. Sometimes parasites can get onto the tongue of a Red Lion Fish that are normally found on Blue Crab and Grass Shrimp. The Red Lion Fish’s small but numerous teeth located on both the top and bottom of its mouth are good for catching small creatures like shrimp and crab.”

Reproduction:A.K.A : Baby

Lion Fish!

Importance and Relationship with Humans

“The Red Lion Fish have formed a invasion in the past. There was a accidental release of six Red Lion Fish in the Southeast. The reason for this incident was due to the Hurricane Andrew that destroyed a large private aquarium on somebody’s porch on the side of Biscayne Bay in 1992. The Red Lion Fish were spotted in a habitat about seven days later. In 1993 and 2002 on the East Coast of Florida there were large continuous and seemingly unstoppable growths of Lion Fish appeared. Then many research facilities started capturing and collecting Lion Fish specimens for studies. The Red Lion Fish is important to humans in many ways because they are not only a very good source of food, if prepared properly, but are displayed very widely in aquariums because of their very colorful pectoral fins. All the entertainment that the Red Lion Fish has provided has brought in over one billion dollars so they are very important in a financial type of way. The Red Lion Fish are also very dangerous to humans because their sting from their pectoral fins can lead to extreme health emergencies.”

Bibliography :

"Lionfish." Animals, Animal Pictures, Wild Animal Facts - National Geographic. National Geographic. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. <http://animals. nationalgeographic.com/animals/fish/lionfish>.

Marini, Frank. "The Lionfish Info Sheet: Captive Care and Home Husbandry." Reefkeeping, 2008. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. <http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2002-11/fm/feature/>.

"Red Lionfish." CreationWiki. 5 Nov. 2010. Web. 12 Jan. 2011. <http://www.creationwiki.org/Pterois_volitans>.