Red lionfish

Red Lionfish (Pterois volitans)

The Pacific red lionfish ( Pterois volitans) belongs to the genus of the lionfish. He lives in the Pacific Ocean between Malaysia and Japan, and is up to 38 inches tall. Its habitat is lagoons and outer reefs. Because of its unusual it is often kept in aquariums. Since the end of the 20th century, it is observed as an invasive species in the western North Atlantic from the coast of Florida to North Carolina, where he was exposed to by aquarists.

Behavior

The red lionfish is active at night, on the day he often hides under overhangs. At night he goes to catch prey by driving its prey ( fish and crayfish ) with its pectoral fins and then quickly sucks ( Saugschnapper ). The Pacific Lionfish is not shy and often swims towards divers, but he is not aggressive.

Poison

Its spiny rays of the dorsal fin contain a strong poison, which is located in a skin secretion on the spines. Lionfish therefore have no venom gland and the spines no toxin channel.

The venom causes extreme pain locally, some with impact throughout the affected limb, local swelling, local necrosis, local paraesthesia possibly on the whole affected limb temporarily. Other symptoms include hives, anxiety, nausea, vomiting, sweating, dyspnea, chest pain, abdominal pain, impaired consciousness, high blood pressure, collapse states to syncope, redness of the face, headache, disorientation. There is no guaranteed death by the bite of a fire fish. As a countermeasure, the "Pressure / Immobilization " technique as well as a symptomatic treatment is recommended.

A majority of the injuries caused by lionfish relates aquarist.

Demarcation

The distinction from the Indian red lionfish ( Pterois miles) has been made classic on applicable Indian variant as characteristic eye patch. However, since this color pattern occurs in juvenile animals of both oceans and faded more and more in old age, the existence of two species by some authors was doubted .. Recent molecular analyzes showed, however, that at least is genetically distinct populations in both fire fish that have separated prior to 2.4 to 8.3 million years ago.