Dataset: comparative lionfish behavior

Name: Behavioral observations of lionfish at native Pacific and invaded Atlantic locations (Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Guam, Philippines) from 2009-2012 (Lionfish Invasion project)
Published: 2013-06-26
Keywords: biota, oceans

Cite This Dataset

DOI:10.1575/1912/bco-dmo.3975.1

Spatial Extent: N:23.81761 E:144.800067 S:9.073039 W:-80.06091

Temporal Extent: 2009-08-07 - 2010-08-20

Project:

Ecological Release and Resistance at Sea: Invasion of Atlantic Coral Reefs by Pacific Lionfish (Lionfish Invasion)

Lead Principal Investigator:

Mark Hixon (Oregon State University, OSU)

Scientist:

Katherine Cure (University of Guam Marine Laboratory, UOGML)

BCO-DMO Data Manager:

Shannon Rauch (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, WHOI BCO-DMO)

Version:

Version Date:

2013-06-26

Restricted:

Validated:

Yes

Current State:

Final no updates expected

Behavioral observations of lionfish at native Pacific and invaded Atlantic locations (Bahamas, Cayman Islands, Guam, Philippines) from 2009-2012 (Lionfish Invasion project)

Abstract:

Behavioral observations of lionfish, with a focus on hunting activity throughout the day, at native Pacific (Guam and the Philippines) vs. invasive Atlantic locations (Bahamas and Caymans) to assess possible differences between ranges. Particular emphasis was placed on species hunted, time spent hunting and total numbers of kills and strikes. The investigators hypothesized that lionfish at invaded locations would have higher success at killing prey and spend less time hunting.

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Archival Copy

Version Date	Archive	Persistent Identifier (PID)	Date PID Issued
2013-06-26	Marine Biological Laboratory/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Library (MBLWHOI DLA)	10.1575/1912/bco-dmo.3975.1	2019-11-12

Description

Related Publications:
Cure K., Benkwitt C.E., Kindinger T.L., Pickering E.A., Pusack T.J., McIlwain J.L, Hixon M.A. (2012) Comparative behavior of red lionfish Pterois volitans on native Pacific versus invaded Atlantic coral reefs. Marine Ecology Progress Series. 467: 181-192. DOI: 10.3354/meps09942

Pusack, T.J., Kindinger T.L., Benkwitt C.E., Katherine, C. (submitted) Invasive red lionfish (Pterois volitans) grow faster and larger in the Atlantic Ocean than in their native Pacific range. Marine Ecology Progress Series.

Methods & Sampling

This sub-project aimed to compare native vs. invasive populations of lionfish, in order to assess some of the potential factors responsible for the invasive success of lionfish in the Atlantic. Assessment in the native range included analysis of behaviour and juvenile growth patterns, at two general locations: Guam and the Philippines. Behaviour was assessed via 10-minute observations on inividual lionfish, aiming to assess different individuals and their hunting behaviour as well as interactions with other species at different times of the day. Observations were done wherever lionfish were found, and included artificial habitats, coral reefs, sandy areas and reef channels with rock/boulder habitat. Observations in the native range were then compared to those at invaded locations (Bahamas and Caymans) undertaken with identical methods by other members of the team. Data were QA/QCd by spot checking against original field data sheets.

Lengthy notes/comments extracted from dataset are below. Indicated by 'see_Note_x' in the data.

Notes in strikes_at_species column:
Strikes_at_sp_Note_1 = Not visible but around P. coelestis and wanting to feed on them
Stikes_at_sp_Note_2 = Plotosus lineatus and something not visible in the water column
Strikes_at_sp_Note_3 = Recruits pomacentrids & cardinals less than 2cm
Strikes_at_sp_Note_4 = Unidentified Apogonidae with bright yell spot on the caudal peduncle

----------------------------
Notes in num_blows column:
Num_blows_Note_1 = 4 (plus 3 continuous bLings at a little sandy bay under a rock)

----------------------------
Notes in blows_at_species column:
Blows_at_sp_Note_1 = unidentified; not possible to view from distance
Blows_at_sp_Note_2 = Labrid small; perhaps Labroides bicolor
Blows_at_sp_Note_3 = unidentified; cannot see from distance at which observer located and water murky; only prey IDd nearby was yell and blue little fish
Blows_at_sp_Note_4 = While being cleaned by L. dimidaitus
Blows_at_sp_Note_5 = cardinalfish bright yelL margin on dorsal fin

---------------------------------
Notes in aggression_at_species column:
Aggrssn_at_Note_1 = 2 pennant bannerfish(H.chrysostomus);agression=approach w flared fins & upright spines;slight movement displaced Heniochus
Aggrssn_at_Note_2 = 2X P.antennata;flaring fins & moving to defend;1 against lrgr PTVO(27cm) that it encntrd looking for diff spot;got it out of its hole & occupied hole
Aggrssn_at_Note_3 = Parrotfish large darting by; lion reacted by flaring spines defensively

------------------------
Notes in killed_species column:
Killed_sp_Note_1 = Invert maybe;not seen;definite action under boat while upsidedown amongst algae overgrowth
Killed_sp_Note_2 = Not visible but feeding observed;must be prey small enough to not be seen at distance of observation
Killed_sp_Note_3 = Not visible but clearly lion turned around from position and ate

------------------------
Notes in aggressive_species column:
Agg_sp_Note_1 = PTVO smaller size (13) approached with flared fins trying to get a hunting spot
Agg_sp_Note_2 = PTVO smaller size approached it with flared fins and kept staring at it;no close approach but enought to cause this animal to move away and stop rest. This PTVO was observed by Brett Taylor, line 39
Agg_sp_Note_3 = Ptvo larger 37 cm; kept displacing this one from its position
Agg_sp_Note_4 = Ptvo larger 37 cm; displaced it from its position
Agg_sp_Note_5 = PTAT 10cm moved voli from its spot

-----------------------------------
Notes in location column:
Loc_Note_1 = 260 deg from mooring / 270 deg from x-mas tree / 310 deg over little mushroom
Loc_Note_2 = 10 deg from ally with mallet head on right / mallet head is 235 deg from x-mas tree
Loc_Note_3 = 80 deg to triple head (?) boundary ~10 m/past other 2 300 deg to lion ledge/ 3 fan rock
Loc_Note_4 = New head across alley from flag 290/300 to Lion ledge (closer to lion ledge)
Loc_Note_5 = Near Goniopora field;Under plate of coral at cleaning stn being cleaned by a blue&yell wrasse w straight caudal fin
Loc_Note_6 = On table Porites rus at the northernmost part of the dive; towards Love Rock; next to previous
Loc_Note_7 = On table Porites rus at the northernmost part of the dive; towards Love Rock
Loc_Note_8 = Under ledge of almost dead skirt like coral w no bumps;not P.rus;reddish color;looks like P. asteroides in Caribbn
Loc_Note_9 = Massive semi dead;under larger volitans;moved & sat next to the big guy & repositioned itself
Loc_Note_10 = On Boulder;Non Coral;undrneath & close to PTVO 32cm;ended next to big guy;at cleaning stn at branching Porites
Loc_Note_11 = At boulder;non-coral;next to Prus cleaning colony;another PTVO under it in silt

-----------------------
Notes in body_orientation column:
Body_Note_1 = Upright and exposed but upon approach kept running away and tucking itself more and more until ended up in cave with only pectorals and tail seen
Body_Note_2 = Area w sm colonies of Pocillopora & recruit Chromis;vertcl position;under boat canopy;recently fallen;couldnt find lttle guy;kept envrnmnt dark & kept opening&closing space
Body_Note_3 = On top of massive boulder w somewhat live coral;horizntl position;next to darker phase volitans almost touching each other
Body_Note_4 = Under sm ledge near bottm facing wall vertically;diff place than othr times;but same head
Body_Note_5 = Upright on sandy bottom; under boulder; could be seen through a hole; right next to previous one

Data Processing Description

BCO-DMO Processing Notes:
- Changed parameter names to conform with BCO-DMO naming conventions.
- Removed apostrophes in the 'site' column. Replaced commas with semi-colons in the columns containing text.
- Added lat and lon for each site from the metadata sheet.
- Replaced blanks with 'nd' to indicate 'no data'.
- Replaced 'ICON' with 'ICON_reef' for consistency throughout dataset.
- Extracted very long notes/comments to improve visual display of the data in the browser.
- Edited notes/comments slightly to shorten length of fields.
- 27-Dec-2017: Removed embargo on dataset.

Data Files

File
comp_lionfish_behavior.csv (Comma Separated Values (.csv), 308.29 KB) MD5:f91d905dfca7ea69d81d58d5dee89d63 Primary data file for dataset ID 3975

More Information about this dataset

Funding Sources

Funding Source	Award Number
NSF Division of Ocean Sciences	OCE-0851162

Deployments

Deployment	Start Date	Platform	Investigator
Cayman_Reef_Surveys_10-11	2010-06-14	Cayman_Islands	Mark Hixon (Lead Principal Investigator)	data info
Guam_Reef_Surveys_09-10	2009-09-24	shoreside Guam	Mark Hixon (Lead Principal Investigator)	data info
LSI_Reef_Surveys_09-12	2009-05-30	Tropical Marine Lab at Lee Stocking Island	Mark Hixon (Lead Principal Investigator)	data info
Philippines_Reef_Surveys_10-11	2010-06-29	shoreside Philippines	Mark Hixon (Lead Principal Investigator)	data info

Instruments

None available yet

Parameters

Date and time formats are described in python strftime() syntax.

Supplied Name	Supplied description	Supplied Units	Standard Name
basin	Atlantic or Pacific Ocean.	text	site_descrip
region	Region sampled.	text	site_descrip
site	Name of the reef site.	text	site
lat	Latitude of the reef site.	decimal degrees	lat
lon	Longitude of the reef site.	decimal degrees	lon
date	Date in which observation was taken in mm/dd/YYYY format.	unitless	date
month	2-digit month when observation was made.	mm (01 to 12)	month
day	2-digit day of month when observation was made.	dd (01 to 31)	day
year	4-digit year when observation was made in YYYY format.	unitless	year
time_sunrise	Time (local) of sunrise at region sampled.	HH:MM	time_local
time_sunset	Time (local) of sunset at region sampled.	HH:MM	time_local
method	Description of method use for observation (snorkel or scuba).	text	no_bcodmo_term
time_start	Time of day when 10-minute observation started.	HH:MM	time_start
time_start_adjusted	Time in hours and minutes between observation start and sunset at each site (i.e. time_start_adjusted = time_sunset - time_start)	HH:MM	time_start
size_est	Size in cm; estimated visually.	cm	fish_len
size_class	Classes in 5 cm increments for posterior analyses.	cm	no_bcodmo_term
weather	Description of weather/cloud-cover. C = clear 0-25% PC = partly cloudy 25-75% O = overcast >75%	text	no_bcodmo_term
current_strength	Description of current strength. low = diver barely kicking to maintain position. medium = periodic kicking required by diver to maintain position. high = constant kicking by diver required to maintain position.	text	no_bcodmo_term
tagged	Describes whether or not elastomer tag was present on observed lionfish.	yes/no	no_bcodmo_term
fish_id	Identifies individuals when they were tagged according to a numbered record.	code	no_bcodmo_term
num_spines_clipped	Numbers for the dorsal spines which were clipped on tagged individuals (e.g. 3;10 means spines # 3 and 10 were clipped). NC stands for not clipped.	text or numbers	no_bcodmo_term
fish_tag_code	Describes combination of letters used to identify elsatomer tag placement along body (e.g. L-GM means tag is on the left side; green color in the mid region).	text or numbers	no_bcodmo_term
habitat	Desciption of the habitat. Artificial = wrecks, tires, logs, piers, any kind of man-made or associated habitat. Coral = continuous reef or coral patch. Sand/rubble = sandy or coarse rubble area. Sponge = sponge gardens. Rock/boulder/cave = large rocks and boulders especially along channels. Seagrass = seagrass beds.	text	no_bcodmo_term
resting_time	Total proportion of 10 minute observation lionfish spent resting (0).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
min_activity_time	Total proportion of 10 minute observation lionfish spent in minimal activity (1).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
active_time	Total proportion of 10 minute observation that lionfish was active (2).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
passive_hunt_time	Total proportion of 10 minute observation that lionfish spent passively hunting (3).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
very_active_hunt_time	Total proportion of 10 minute observation that lionfish was hunting/very active (4).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
avg_activity	Weighted average of proportions of time spent in all observed activities during each 10-minute observation. avg_activity = [(0resting_time)+(1min_activity_time)+(2active_time)+(3passive_hunt_time)+(4*very_active_hunt_time)]/5	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
total_hunting_time	Sum of proportion of time spent hunting (passive hunting + active hunting).	proportion	no_bcodmo_term
num_of_strikes	Total number of strikes by lionfish against prey.	integer	no_bcodmo_term
strikes_at_species	Identification of species or taxa striked against by lionfish for each strike.	code/text	no_bcodmo_term
num_blows	Total number of blows against prey.	integer	no_bcodmo_term
blows_at_species	Identification of species or taxa blown against by lionfish.	code/text	no_bcodmo_term
num_aggressions	Total number of aggressions by lionfish against other species.	integer	no_bcodmo_term
aggression_at_species	Identification of species or taxa aggresive towards lionfish.	code/text	no_bcodmo_term
num_kills	Total number of kills.	integer	no_bcodmo_term
killed_species	Identification of species or taxa killed by lionfish.	code/text	no_bcodmo_term
prey_size	Estimate of prey size (cm) when a kill occurred.	cm	fish_len
num_aggression_against_PTVO	Total number of aggressions by other species against lionfish.	integer	no_bcodmo_term
aggressive_species	Identification of species or taxa aggresive towards lionfish.	code/text	no_bcodmo_term
location	Description of specific area where lionfish was found at study site.	text	no_bcodmo_term
body_orientation	Description of specific body position of lionfish during the observation period.	text	no_bcodmo_term
person	Initials of person who observed lionfish.	text	investigator
notes	Data entry related or QA/AC related notes or notes about a particular observation. NONE or nd if no notes associated with observation.	text	no_bcodmo_term

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