Hunting 

As the previous page points out, the devil firefish is extremely well adapted to its environment. That is very bad news for a number of organisms that are eaten by Pterois miles. Lionfish are nocturnal hunters, meaning that they hunt primarily at night but in rare instances are seen hunting during the day.

 

Lionfish are also very slow. To overcome this, they have adapted their food selection to smaller, slower organisms. Another way theyhttp://oceanservice.noaa.gov/education/stories/lionfish/runins.html overcome their lack of speed is to hunt by ambushing and cornering their prey using their large, outstretched fins. They continue to get closer and closer until it is within striking distance and then, within a blink of an eye, the lionfish strikes and its prey has disappeared. Before its prey has time to react, it is being swallowed deeper and deeper into the digestive system by rapid gulps.    

                                  Lionfish hunting at night. Taken from NOAA.

Lionfish do not have big teeth like sharks, who can use to bite into their prey and rip into smaller pieces. To overcome their underdeveloped teeth, lionfish have a large mouth and prey on smaller fish, which it can consume whole. Organisms that are commonly found in the stomachs of Pterois miles include shrimp, small fish, and even smaller lionfish. Cannibalism is occasionally seen in the wild and in aquariums.      

http://floridakeys.noaa.gov/animals/invasives.html

Here are some videos of Lionfish eating. Warning viewer discretion is advised.

Minnow

Slow motion

Poor goldfish

Predators

Since they are so venomous, larger fish have been observed to starve to death rather than eat a Pterois miles. This results in very few natural predators; however, cornetfish, sharks, sting rays, eels, and even large groupers have been known to eat Pterois miles. Another major predator are humans. Lionfish are a tasty delicacy in countries around the Gulf of Mexico and Florida.  

Here are some videos of predators eating lionfish. Warning viewer discretion is advised

Eel

Sting Ray

Shark

Parasites

There are no known parasites of the Pterois miles.      

Circulatory System

The devil firefish shares a circulatory system with most other fish. They have a single-cycle circulatory system. The major difference between a human’s circulatory system and fish the heart pumps blood to the gills and from there it goes directly to the other parts of the body. In humans, blood gets pumped to the heart and then to the lungs where it is pumped back to the heart and to the rest of the body. Similar to other fish, lionfish store their energy in fat cells. To read about the reproduction and life cycle of Pterois miles, click on the Reproduction button.