The RSM of invasion presented introduces the possibility of a feedback loop through the Sargasso Sea through which larvae may have been transported from Bermuda to the Bahamas. It would be useful in future research efforts to determine if lionfish larvae utilize these vast sargassum patches in their development phases. In conclusion, our GSM proves that a simple physical cellular model is capable of emulating the complex spread of a marine invasive species.
Acknowledgments
We would like to thank Pam Schofield and Amy Benson at the USGS for providing us the lionfish capture data on which this study was based. We are also grateful to Lad Atkins and his work at REEF for providing their capture records to the USGS-NAS database. We recognize as well all of those individuals who reported sightings and/or captures to one of these agencies. Finally, we acknowledge the two anonymous reviewers who provided valuable insight and constructive comments on this manuscript. This is NCRI contribution 119.