< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > introduction to lionfish</h1>
The scientific name of the lionfish is the scorpionfish, which is a genus of bony fish in the family Scorpene. The body is 25–40 cm long, the body surface is yellow, and the cloth has red to brown stripes. The back is venomously spines, the pectoral fin is pinnate, and the dorsal, and caudal fins are transparent. There are several tentacles above the eyes, the snout is long and narrow, and the back is centrally raised. The eyes are medium-sized, the eye septum is narrow and concave, the mouth is in place, and there is a depression in the center of the upper jaw. The gill cap has a flat spine ; the gill foramen are broad and the body is rounded or ctenophoric.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > morphological characteristics</h1>
Lionfish are 25–40 cm long, yellow in color, with red to brown stripes on the cloth, high lateral lines, transparent dorsal, and caudal fins, and black spots. There are 13 poisonous spines on the back. The dorsal fin is very tall, the fin spines are slender, the fin membrane is deeply lobed, the pectoral fin is pinnate, very long, extending over the base of the caudal fin, the fin membrane is deeply lobed, 14 pieces; the ventral fin is pectoral; the fin is 6-7 with 3 spines; the caudal fin is round, and the root of the fin and the flap around the mouth contain venom glands that can secrete venom.
It has a bony ridge that spans the cheeks and a flap that partially covers the eyes and snout; there are several tentacles above the eyes. The snout is long and narrow, with a central bulge on the back. The eyes are equally large and the upper lateral position. The eye septum is narrow and concave. The end of the mouth, obliquely lobed, has a groove in the center of the upper jaw. The upper and lower jaws and plough bones have teeth, and the palate bones are toothless. The gill cap has a flattened spine; the gill hole is wide. The body is rounded or ctenophoric.
< h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > habitat</h1>
It mostly inhabits rocky or coral reefs near the coast of temperate zones, but also lives in bridge piles, shipwrecks, and aquatic grass. Reclusive and solitary, he feeds on crustaceans, invertebrates and small fish.
The distribution area is the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean. It mostly inhabits rocky or coral reefs near the coast of temperate zones, but also lives in bridge piles, shipwrecks, and aquatic grass. The range of activity depth is usually 1-50 meters deep, but there are also scorpionfish that inhabit the deep sea of about 300 meters.
< h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > life habits</h1>
behavior
Nocturnal, saltwater fish, swimming slowly in the dark water at night with their back and hip fins, and when the sun rises, they hide in the shadows of corals and rocks. During the day breaks, the head will be lowered and completely stationary. Peers communicate through touch, smell, and secretion of chemicals. He has a solitary personality and likes to live alone.
When in danger, the scorpion will try to open its long fins as much as possible to make itself appear large, while warning the other party with bright colors. If it encounters an equally bold fish, the scorpion will constantly stretch and retract its full body fins, one will unfold, one will retract. Even if the species falls into the mouth of a predator, the predator will have difficulty swallowing because of the fins on the scorpion's whole body, and when it is spit out, it will be stabbed by poisonous thorns, resulting in poisoning.
< h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > food</h1>
Variety of food
At the highest level of the food web in coral reef environments, the scorpion feeds mainly on crustaceans, invertebrates and small fish, with juvenile squid eating 5.5-13.5 g per day, adult squid eating 14.6 g per day, and an adult squid eating food equivalent to 8.2 times its own weight per year.
Sunset is the best time for the scorpion to hunt, during which all fish and invertebrates return to their resting spots, while nocturnal fish come out to feed. Because the surrounding animals are ready to rest, all the scorpions do not need to expend too much energy to find their prey.
Usually, the species will swim quietly around the coral reef, inadvertently making a sudden attack and catching the victim. When the scorpion attempts to hunt small fish, it usually unfolds all the fins on its chest to cover the movement of its tail fins, and its bright colors blend with the coral reef background, making the prey less frightened, making hunting easier.
Eating style
The scorpion attacks its prey in a large-mouthed manner, and because the process is so swift and sleek, other fish along with the victim may not have reacted. As a result, the scorpion can continue to hunt other unsuspecting fish. It is also sometimes hunted in open seas. It observes small schools of fish at a depth of 20-30 cm above the surface of the water, and when the small fish jump out of the water in an attempt to avoid another predator, the scorpion swims below them to wait for them to fall back into the water before attacking.
If two male scorpions meet while preying, the more aggressive males darken their body color and point their poisonous spines at the other male, while the weaker one folds their pectoral fins and swim away.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > breeding method</h1>
Only during the breeding season will the scorpion come into contact with other species. In this case, a male fish is pursued by multiple females, and several fish act together to form a school of 3-8 fish.
Scorpion
When lionfish are ready to breed, the differences in appearance between the sexes become more pronounced. The male is darkened and blackened, the color appears more uniform, and the white stripes are not obvious. Females who have mature eggs become pale and their abdomen, pharynx, and snout turn white. Such a color change is easier for females to find males.
Courtship begins when night is approaching, usually initiated by males. When a male finds a female, the male will lie on the surface of the sea, looking at the surface of the water, supporting himself with his ventral fins, and then circle around the female. After a few turns, the male begins to swim toward the surface of the sea, followed by the female, shaking her pectoral fins along the way.
Before mating and spawning, two scorpions may rise and fall several times in the water, and at the end of the last time, the two fish will circle and swim under the surface. The female then releases eggs from her body. There are 2 hollow mucus tubes in the egg sac, so they can float close to the surface of the water. After about 15 minutes, the mucus tubes of the oocyst are filled with seawater, which becomes an ellipsoid with a diameter of 2-5 cm.
During the courtship period. Male scorpions become unusually agitated and irritable, and when other male scorpions or non-homogeneous species enter their territory, the males and females will point their stingers at the intruder and approach them, and then swim around it with the thorns aimed at the invaders.
Next, the two males will "sit" facing each other, and the attacker will demonstrate to the intruder by shaking his spine during predation, and then the attacker will shake his head and try to bite the intruder's head. At this point, the attacker will either be severely stabbed or will carry out the next round of attacks until the intruder escapes.
Remarks: The above information originates from:
1 Spotted-finned scorpionfish. Natural Herbarium of China
2 Scorpionfish. Animal world
The above is a brief introduction to the lionfish, interested friends click a note, look forward to the next issue we come to talk about what the bamboo striped shark looks like?