microrobert
07-18-2013, 07:04 PM
Uh Oh. Researchers discover lots of huge (invasive) lionfish living deeper than expected
http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2013/07/6887870438_a20f01ce66_b.jpg.662x0_q100_crop-scale.jpg
Lionfish. For anyone familiar with this species, you'll know that they have incredible appetites. That's fine when they live in the Pacific where they evolved, and their numbers are kept in check. But when they are living where they don't belong, and have no predators, their presence spells disaster.
Introduced to the Atlantic in the 1990s, lionfish have made quick work of eating everything in sight, reducing some fish populations by more than 80 percent. A serious problem for conservationists for decades, it was thought that these fish would at least be hanging around coral reefs in shallower areas, where it is easier to catch them. But researchers studying this invasive species discovered a big problem -- bigger fish, lots of them, living deeper than that many of that size were expected to be.
Uh Oh. Researchers discover lots of huge (invasive) lionfish living deeper than expected : TreeHugger (http://www.treehugger.com/ocean-conservation/uh-oh-researchers-discover-lots-huge-invasive-lionfish-living-deeper-expected.html)
http://media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2013/07/6887870438_a20f01ce66_b.jpg.662x0_q100_crop-scale.jpg
Lionfish. For anyone familiar with this species, you'll know that they have incredible appetites. That's fine when they live in the Pacific where they evolved, and their numbers are kept in check. But when they are living where they don't belong, and have no predators, their presence spells disaster.
Introduced to the Atlantic in the 1990s, lionfish have made quick work of eating everything in sight, reducing some fish populations by more than 80 percent. A serious problem for conservationists for decades, it was thought that these fish would at least be hanging around coral reefs in shallower areas, where it is easier to catch them. But researchers studying this invasive species discovered a big problem -- bigger fish, lots of them, living deeper than that many of that size were expected to be.
Uh Oh. Researchers discover lots of huge (invasive) lionfish living deeper than expected : TreeHugger (http://www.treehugger.com/ocean-conservation/uh-oh-researchers-discover-lots-huge-invasive-lionfish-living-deeper-expected.html)