Lionfish Invade Brazil’s Abrolhos Reefs, Threatening Biodiversity and Economy

Fishers off Porto Seguro have caught at least 440 invasive lionfish in recent weeks, a number that the local government is paying for to curb the species’ rapid spread. Native to the Indo‑Pacific, lionfish have no natural predators along Brazil’s coast and are known to prey on juvenile fish, already damaging coral reef ecosystems in the North Atlantic and the Caribbean. Their arrival in the Abrolhos reefs—the largest and richest reef system in the South Atlantic—has been confirmed, though the extent of their presence is still unknown. The reefs host about 90 coral and 266 fish species, including the critically endangered goliath grouper and the endangered blue parrotfish, and serve as a key breeding ground for humpback whales. The lionfish threat could deplete fish populations, harm the fishing economy, and damage tourism on these degraded reefs.