Targeted census of lionfishes (Scorpaenidae) reveals high densities in their native range

Zara‐louise Cowan (1, 2, 3, 4) , Rohan M Brooker (4) , Julien Gasc (5) , Camille Gache (5) , David Lecchini (5, 6) , William E Feeney (3, 4)

1 NTNU - Norwegian University of Science and Technology
2 CAM - University of Cambridge [UK]
3 Griffith University [Brisbane]
4 IRCP - Institute for Pacific Coral Reefs
5 CRIOBE - Centre de recherches insulaires et observatoire de l'environnement
6 LabEX CORAIL - Laboratoire d'Excellence CORAIL

Indo-Pacific lionfishes generally exhibit cryptic behaviours and so can be missed when conducting non-targeted surveys. Here, the authors report the results from targeted surveys of lionfish at Moorea, French Polynesia. Lionfish from three species (Pterois antennata, Pterois radiata, Dendrochirus biocellatus) were observed at a mean density of 267 individuals ha−1. This is substantially higher than previous estimates from the same area (Moorea) and represents the highest reported density of lionfishes from their Pacific range. Overall, this study highlights the importance of targeted survey techniques for detecting cryptic species on coral reefs.

Domains: Animal biology

Zara‐louise Cowan, Rohan M Brooker, Julien Gasc, Camille Gache, David Lecchini, et al.. Targeted census of lionfishes (Scorpaenidae) reveals high densities in their native range. Journal of Fish Biology, 2022, 102 (2), pp.532 - 536. ⟨10.1111/jfb.15277⟩. ⟨hal-04002633⟩