Abstract

Over the last decade, the invasion of the Indo-Pacific lionfish have captured the attention of many scientists and researchers, due to the poorly understood ecological impacts the invaded species can have on the marine ecosystems and native organisms. Because of its voracious appetite and lack of predators, the invaded species’ population is rapidly increasing; therefore, this may be challenging for managers when trying to control the population and reduce the potential negative impacts. In the U.S. Virgin Islands, the lionfish sighting have become more frequent over the last few years. To aid USVI managers in the efforts to control the population and reduce the number of lionfish by targeting specific habitat types, this study will focus on evaluating the abundance and distribution patterns and size structure of the lionfish population. My goal is to identify habitats with the highest abundance of adult and juvenile lionfish and any drivers that the species may have in selecting specific habitat type. In this study, fish surveys were carried out in three habitat types – mangroves, seagrass beds, and coral reefs. Ten sites were randomly stratified by habitat type, 25 x 4 m (large fish) and 25 x 2 m (small fish) transects were laid down, and a roving dive was performed at each site. In addition to the surveys, a database compiled of information from the surveys as well as past and current data on lionfish sightings within the USVI.

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