Genetic connectivity of Lionfish (Pterois volitans) in marine protected areas of the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Sea

Lionfish (Pterois volitans) have rapidly invaded the tropical Atlantic and spread across the wider Caribbean in a relatively short period of time. Because of its high invasion capacity, we used it as a model to identify the connectivity among nine marine protected areas (MPAs) situated in four countries in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.This study provides evidence of local genetic differentiation of P. volitansin the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea.A total of 475 lionfish samples were characterized with 12 microsatellites, with 6 to 20 alleles per locus. Departures from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) were found in 10 of the 12 loci, all caused by heterozygous excess. Moderate genetic differentiation was observed between Chiriviche, Venezuela and Xcalak , México localities (FST= 0.012), and between the Los Roques and Veracruz (FST= 0.074) sites. STRUCTURE analysis found that four genetic entities best fit our data. A unique genetic group in the Gulf of Mexico may imply ...