Red lionfish

The red lionfish is a stunning reef fish covered in reddish-brown and white stripes. Long, feathery fins spread out all around its body like a fan, or a bit like the shaggy mane of a lion, which is how it got its name. It drifts slowly and gracefully through the water, looking almost like a swimming flower.

Lionfish live near coral reefs and rocky places in the sea. During the day they often rest in a shady crack or under a ledge, and they do most of their hunting in the evening and at night. They use their wide, wing-like fins to gently herd small fish and shrimp into a corner before gulping them up.

Along its back the lionfish has a row of thin, sharp spines. These spines hold a venom, but the fish uses them mainly to keep itself safe. Because a lionfish swims quite slowly, it cannot dash away from danger, so instead it calmly turns its spines towards anything that comes too close, warning it to stay back.

Red lionfish come from the warm Indo-Pacific Ocean, near places like Australia and the islands of the Pacific. In more recent times some lionfish have ended up living in the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, far from their real home. There they are called an invasive species, because they eat lots of the local fish and do not naturally belong in those reefs.

Even though the lionfish causes trouble in its new home, it is a healthy and common fish overall, and back in the Indo-Pacific it is simply one more beautiful animal that helps make a coral reef such a colourful place to explore.