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Cited by 306Marine Ecology and Invasive SpeciesFish Ecology and Management StudiesFish Biology and Ecology Studies

Biological invasion of the Indo-Pacific lionfish Pterois volitans along the Atlantic coast of North America

Open access
Whitfield, PE, Gardner, T, Vives, SP, Gilligan, MR, Courtenay Ray, WR, Ray, GC, Hare, JA·2002·Marine Ecology Progress Series
DOI 10.3354/meps235289
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Abstract

The occurrence of lionfish Pterois volitans is reported from the western Atlantic Ocean.Adults were collected off the coasts of North Carolina, Georgia and Florida, and juveniles were collected along the shore of Long Island, New York.They have also been found around Bermuda.Lionfish are indigenous to tropical waters of the western Pacific and their occurrence along the east coast of the United States represents a human-induced introduction.Distribution of adults suggests lionfish are surviving in the western Atlantic and capture of juveniles provides putative evidence of reproduction.The most likely pathway of introduction is aquarium releases, but introduction via ballast water cannot be ruled out.The ecosystem of the southeastern United States continental shelf is already undergoing change: reef fish communities are becoming more tropical and many fish species are overfished.These ongoing changes, along with limited information regarding the biology of P. volitans, make predictions of long-term effects of the introduction difficult.This discovery represents the first, apparently successful introduction, of a marine fish from the western Pacific to Atlantic coastal waters of the United States.

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Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.3354/meps235289

Cites

41 of 41 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

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  • The incongruence between the inshore distribution of lionfish in their native range and their primarily offshore distribution in their introduced range could be a result of temperature-limited distribution during winter.

    “Further, the incongruence between the inshore distribution of lionfish in their native range and their primarily offshore distribution in their introduced range could be a result of temperature-limited distribution during winter (Whitfield et al. 2002).”

    From Thermal tolerance and potential distribution of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles complex) on the east coast of the United States (2004) · cites this paper as Whitfield et al. 2002

    The Fig. 4 caption (listed under Future work; page not provided) identifies the February 16°C isotherm as a likely inshore limit for lionfish habitat on the southeastern U.S. shelf, supporting the proposed winter-temperature explanation. The paper also describes offshore observations, but the passages do not establish a generally inshore distribution in the native range or explicitly make the claimed native-versus-introduced comparison. (LLM, conf=0.83)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Since the year 2000, adult and juvenile lionfish have been observed on the mid- and outer-continental shelf (20 to 80 m) off the southeast United States.

    “Since the year 2000, adult and juvenile lionfish have been observed on the mid-and outer-continental shelf (20 to 80 m) off the southeast United States (Whitfield et al. 2002).”

    From Thermal tolerance and potential distribution of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles complex) on the east coast of the United States (2004) · cites this paper as Whitfield et al. 2002

    The observations in Table 1 (p. 291) document adult lionfish off North Carolina and Georgia from 2000 onward, at depths of 38–43 m. They do not document juveniles on the southeastern shelf or observations across the claimed 20–80 m range: the listed juveniles were collected off Long Island at 1 m depth. (LLM, conf=0.91)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The spread of lionfish along the entire southeast United States continental shelf occurred quickly; the area of thermally appropriate habitat was occupied within the scale of 1 to 10 yr.

    “Although limited in a zoogeographic sense, the spread of lionfish along the entire southeast United States continental shelf occurred quickly; the area of thermally appropriate habitat was occupied within the scale of 1 to 10 yr (Whitfield et al. 2002, Hare & Whitfield 2003).”

    From Thermal tolerance and potential distribution of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles complex) on the east coast of the United States (2004) · cites this paper as Whitfield et al. 2002

    The observations table and Potential survival section report adult lionfish off North Carolina in 2000–2001, Georgia in 2001, and Florida in 2002; the paper concludes that lionfish were likely established along the southeastern shelf. But its Future work section calls for determining the introduction’s spatial extent and refining the map of potential habitat. It does not establish that the entire thermally appropriate area was occupied, or give a 1-to-10-year timescale for that occupation. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Along the southeast United States continental shelf, the majority of lionfish have been observed between 35 and 45 m, with a maximum observed depth of 80 m.

    “Along the southeast United States continental shelf, the majority of lionfish have been observed between 35 and 45 m, with a maximum observed depth of 80 m (Whitfield et al. 2002).”

    From Thermal tolerance and potential distribution of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles complex) on the east coast of the United States (2004) · cites this paper as Whitfield et al. 2002

    Table 1 (p. 291) places the documented lionfish observations off North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida at 38–43 m, supporting the 35–45 m portion of the claim. It does not report an observation at 80 m; the Future work section instead recommends searching southeastern-shelf reefs and wrecks between 30 and 50 m. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The introduction of lionfish resulted from aquarium releases.

    “All available evidence indicates that the introduction of lionfish resulted from aquarium releases (Courtenay 1995, Whitfield et al. 2002, Hare & Whitfield 2003).”

    From Thermal tolerance and potential distribution of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles complex) on the east coast of the United States (2004) · cites this paper as Whitfield et al. 2002

    The Abstract identifies aquarium releases as the most likely pathway, and the Method of introduction section gives reasons for that assessment. But the Abstract says ballast-water introduction cannot be ruled out, so the source does not establish that aquarium releases were the cause. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

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Cites

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1 of the 42 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.

Research works printed but not linked: 4

  1. Briggs JC (1974) Marine zoogeography. McGraw Hill, New York
  2. Courtenay WR (1995) Marine fish introductions in south- eastern Florida. American Fisheries Society Introduced Fish Section Newsletter 1995(14):2-3
  3. Eschmeyer WN (1986) Scorpaenidae. In: Smith MM, Heem- stra PC (eds) Smiths' sea fishes. Springer-Verlag, Berlin, p 463-478
  4. Taylor JN, Courtenay WR, McCann JA (1984) Known impacts of exotic fish in the continental United States. In: Courte- nay WR Jr, Stauffer JR Jr (eds) Distribution, biology and management of exotic fishes. John Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, MD, p 322-373

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Authors
Whitfield, P., Gardner, T., Vives, S., Gilligan, M., Courtenay Ray, W., Ray, G., & Hare, J.
Affiliations
  • National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (US)
  • Hofstra University (US)
  • Georgia Southern University (US)
  • Savannah State University (US)
  • University of Virginia (US)
Corresponding author
Whitfield, PE
Venue
Marine Ecology Progress Series
Publisher
Inter-Research Science Center
Published
2002
Volume
235
Pages
289-297
ISSN
  • 0171-8630 (ISSN-L)
  • 1616-1599
DOI
10.3354/meps235289
OpenAlex
W2029338614
Cited by
306
References
42
Citations by year
2026: 3 · 2025: 5 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 16 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 17 · 2018: 17 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 28 · 2015: 15 · 2014: 28 · 2013: 14 · 2012: 13
FWCI
5.93
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
Marine Ecology Progress Series (publishedVersion)
Topics
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Marine Ecology and Invasive Species
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Nature and Landscape Conservation › Fish Ecology and Management Studies
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Aquatic Science › Fish Biology and Ecology Studies
Keywords
Pterois volitans, Indo-Pacific lionfish, biological invasions, western Atlantic, ballast water, species distribution, reproduction, Bermuda

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