Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 10.1 Lionfish Pterois volitans (photo from NOAA)
in some areas they make up almost half of the total biomass
of predators. The ecological impacts of this invasion range
from disrupting the structure and function of reef communi-
ties to impacts on commercial fishing and tourism. Lionfish
eat ecologically important species such as algae eaters (e.g.,
parrotfish) that keep algae in check on coral reefs. On heavily
invaded reefs, lionfish can remove over 60% of prey fish, some
of which include economically important species like snapper
and grouper. The socioeconomic impacts can be severe, espe-
cially to fishing and tourism, which are critically important
to many Caribbean and Atlantic countries. Off the coast of
North Carolina they are eating so well that, like obese people,
they are found to have globs of fatty tissue on their internal
organs—not a normal condition for a fish.
What are some invasive jellies and what harm do they do?
One of the worst marine invasions occurred in the early 1980s
when the North American comb jelly Mnemiopsis leidyi (Figure
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