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Common Lionfish
Pterois volitans (Linnaeus, 1758)
A Common Lionfish at a depth of 15 m, "Steve's Bommie", Great Barrier Reef off Port Douglas, Queensland, December 2000. View larger image.
A juvenile Common Lionfish at Shiprock, Port Hacking, New South Wales, January 1999. View larger image. View another larger image of a juvenile.
A juvenile Common Lionfish at The Gutter, Bass Point, New South Wales. View larger image.
The Common Lionfish has very long pectoral and dorsal fins. The body is covered with red to black bands on a pale background. Adults often have white spots along the lateral line. A tentacle is usually present above both eyes. The tentacle is variable in size and shape, usually long in juveniles and leaf-like in adults.
The Common Lionfish grows to 38 cm in length.
This species has extremely venomous fin spines. All 13 dorsal fin spines, 1 pelvic fin spine and 3 anal fin spines are venomous. The pectoral and caudal fins are not toxic because they lack spines. When disturbed by a diver, the Common Lionfish often makes little effort to swim away. Instead it points its dorsal fin spines towards the intruder.
It is a tropical species found widely throughout the Indo-Pacific.
In Australia it is known from south-western Western Australia, around the tropical north of the country and south to the southern coast of New South Wales.
View a map of the collecting localities of specimens in the Australian Museum Fish Collection.
The Common Lionfish looks very similar to the Spotfin Lionfish Pterois antennata (view image). and has a similar distribution in Australia. The two species can be distinguished by the shape and colour of the pectoral fins. The fins of P. volitans are more pointed and covered with variable spots and bands, while P. antennata has more rounded fins which are white to gold in colour.
Other differences include the pectoral ray count, which is 14-16 in P. volitans and 16-17 in P. antennata. The scales of P. volitans are cycloid (more information) but in P. antennata they are mostly ctenoid. The lateral scale rows number 90-120 in P. volitans and 50-54 in P. antennata.
Further reading
- Hutchins, B. & R. Swainston. 1986. Sea Fishes of Southern Australia. Complete Field Guide for Anglers and Divers. Swainston Publishing. Pp. 180.
- Kuiter, R.H. 1996. Guide to Sea Fishes of Australia. New Holland. Pp. 433.
- Kuiter, R.H. 2000. Coastal Fishes of South-eastern Australia. Gary Allen. Pp. 437.
- Myers, R.F. 1999. Micronesian Reef Fishes. Coral Graphics. Pp. 330.
- Randall, J.E., Allen, G.R. & R.C. Steene. 1997. Fishes of the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. Crawford House Press. Pp. 557.
