Lionfish Toxicity

For those of you who attended the September meeting, Chris Rule asked a question regarding whether the Atlantic lionfish was more venonous than other lionfish species. Here is DAN's spokesman, Brian Harper's response:

Hey Billy,

Thanks again for hosting last night, and thanks to your group for all the great questions. Regarding the inquiry about whether lionfish in the Atlantic or Caribbean are less toxic than Indo-Pacific lionfish, the answer seems to be that there is no difference in toxicity. The primary reason is that these are not two distinct species—they are one in the same: Pterois volitans. They have not been present in the Atlantic/Caribbean for long enough to evolve into a different (more or less venomous) species.