- Name: Lionfish
- Caption: Pterois, commonly known as lionfish, is a genus of venomous marine fish found mostly in the Indo-Pacific. Pterois is characterized by red, white and black bands, showy pectoral fins and venomous spiky fin rays. Pterois are classified into nine different species, but Pterois radiata, Pterois volitans and Pterois miles are the most commonly studied. Pterois are popular aquarium fish and are readily utilized in the culinary world. In the mid 1990s, the species P. volitans and P. miles were unintentionally introduced into the Atlantic Ocean and have become an invasive species along the East Coast of the United States[, the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, and the wider Caribbean. They are now also found in the Gulf of Mexico.
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