Lessons from the invasion front: Integration of research and management of the lionfish invasion in Brazil

Genetic diversity patterns of lionfish in the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean reveal a rapidly expanding stepping-stone bioinvasion process

“…In this scenario, our data seems likely to underrepresent S7 RP1 variability in the Brazilian ecoregions. A high variability in S7 RP1 would be consistent with the rapid expanding lionfish invasion observed now 14 , 15 . It seems clear that in order to understand the demography of the invading lionfish using S7 RP1, a deeper understanding of its mutation rates and a wider and continued genetic survey is necessary.…”

“…This hypothesis is also strongly supported by the spatio-temporal trends recently observed for the lionfish invasion in Brazilian waters and by the genetic data presented here. In the past three years (2020–2023) 352 animals, including juveniles, adults, and egg-bearing females, were reported on 2766 km of Brazilian coast, which strongly indicates a fast and extensive new stage of the SW Atlantic invasion 14 , 15 . While some diversification is suggested by the nuclear S7 RP1, the two COI haplotypes observed in our samples have been previously reported in the United States and the Caribbean, seemingly connecting the population studied here to that present in the Caribbean.…”

“…As a matter of fact, after the first lionfish was found in Brazilian waters 12 , it raised concerns on the risk of bioinvasion related to possible aquarium releases, and the Brazilian environmental authority banned the import of five Pterois species. Before that, starting in 2008, all imports had to be registered 15 . On the other hand, larval dispersion from the Caribbean would require countercurrent movement over thousands of kilometres and a successful crossing of the Amazon plume, which flows northward into the Caribbean 16 .…”

“…However, the scenario has changed dramatically in recent years. Between 2020 and 2023 lionfish have spread throughout the SW Atlantic, with multiple records over an extensive area (~ 2800 km of coast) and depth range (1–110 m) including Great Amazon Reef System (GARS), the northeastern coast of Brazil (NEB), and the oceanic archipelago of Fernando de Noronha (FNA) 13 – 15 . Now fully fledged, this invasion has been expected for 10 years, ever since lionfish populations were established at the southernmost limit of the Caribbean Province, Trinidad and Tobago 13 .…”

“…The first records of lionfish in the equatorial SW Atlantic were obtained in 2020 from the Amazon mesophotic reefs at depths of 70–100 m 13 . Since then, multiple records, involving approximately 350 individuals, have been reported from the equatorial SW Atlantic in 2020–2023 15 . Alarmingly, lionfish have recently reached the Rocas Reef complex, which is the only atoll in the South Atlantic Ocean.…”