Abstract

Invasive lionfish (Pterois sp.) were first observed off southeast Florida in 1985 and are now established throughout much of the northwest Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea, and Gulf of Mexico. Agonistic behavior has been observed in numerous reef fish species, including lionfish in aquaria and in their native range. However, there is a lack of documenta-tion in the literature regarding the agonistic behavior of lionfish in their invaded range, despite several videos having captured aggressive actions. On July 26, 2017, two lionfish were observed at a small coral patch reef in Roatan, Honduras (16°19.783’N, 86°34.383’W) in 17 m of water, exhibiting behavior similar to what has been described in the literature. The two lionfish were exhibiting what is described as ‘high intensity acts’ towards each other, including facial contact with the head and flanks of the other lionfish, as well as the venomous dorsal spines making direct contact with the opponent, resulting in several abrasions and punctures to both individuals. These acts of aggression continued at varying levels of intensity for approximately five minutes. The culmination of the agonistic behavior involved the quick retreat of the now subdominant lionfish (faded coloration), under temporary pursuit by the dominant lionfish (remained a darkened color). This documentation of agonistic behavior in invasive lionfish provides further evidence for their behavioral and ecological establishment in the invaded range and may affect future marine research, especially within invaded reef ecosystems.

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