Lionfish proves to be tireless terminator-like invasive species

[IDemo]

Scientists studying invasive lionfish devastating populations of native fish in the Atlantic and the Caribbean say the predators' "unusual and alarming" hunting tactics make them even more dangerous than thought.

Where other fish predators will quit stalking particularly difficult prey and turn their search to new areas to find easier targets, the lionfish never give up, employing an almost unstoppable "terminator" style to keep on successfully killing, they say.

The invasive species, native to the Pacific and Indian Oceans, seems willing to remain in a single area even as numbers of potential prey diminish, eating the local prey population to extinction before moving on, researchers say.

"Almost every new thing we learn about them is some characteristic that makes them a more formidable predator," says Oregon State University researcher Kurt Ingeman. "And it's now clear they will hunt successfully even when only a few fish are present. This behavior is unusual and alarming."

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/13093/20140814/lionfish-proves-to-be-tireless-terminator-like-invasive-species.htm

[pscot]

1. and they're venomous

[msongs]

2. and they are delicious (some say) and becoming quite popular on Caribbean menus nt

[Submariner]

3. I ran an ROV survey on a 400 ft deep pipe

last year outside a Puerto Rico harbor (Ponce), and we observed 3 lionfish corner a small sea bass species against a hollow in the coral structure, then move in for the kill. Lionfish are a destructive plague.