Greetings once more fellow divers. With REEF’s mission being marine conservation through citizen science and education, there are plenty of opportunities to engage the public and raise awareness for several problems our earth’s oceans face. One of the big problems that is seen worldwide is the presence of invasive species. Like unwelcome dinner guests, they come from far away, make a mess, and create a giant problem that must be dealt with. One of the worst offenders is right here in our back yard. The stretch from as far south as Brazil and as far north as New York and New England. They are found all throughout the Caribbean and Gulf and are as harmful as they are pretty. If you read the previous passage and guessed Lionfish, you are correct!
Originally from the Red Sea and the Indo-pacific region, Lionfish have made themselves quite comfy on our reefs, gobbling up and consuming more than their fair share of native reef fish. Their stomach can enlarge 33 times its normal size, with dense populations consuming 460,000 prey fish/acre/year. Their gluttonous eating habits can reduce fish prey populations by up to 90 %. They can be found in as shallow as a few inches of water, down all the way to 1000 ft. They become sexually mature in less than a year, and can spawn throughout the year, every 4 days. On top of that, a single egg sack can contain 12,000 to 15,000 eggs, and is carried great distances via ocean currents. If their eating habits and reproductive habits were not bad enough, they are armored like tanks with 13 venomous spines on its back, 1 on each of the pelvic fins, and 3 in its anal fin. While not lethal, the venom is able to give any unsuspecting predator or diver a very painful memory. Altogether, it sometimes seems these guys were manufactured in a lab by some evil genius scientists that had a grudge against coral reefs, or had simply seen one too many creature features during the weekends.
All hope is not lost. Lionfish have one Achilles fin: they are absolutely delicious. And thus the strategy of eat em’ to beat em’ was born. REEF has been at the forefront of Lionfish management since 2005. Through workshops and educational events, the organization has been working relentlessly to raise awareness of the striped menace, as well as educate divers and community members what they can do to be part of the solution. And the solution is tasty. Solutions such as ceviche, cocoanut crusted, blackened, grilled, the list goes on and on. To really spread the word, as well as remove as many lionfish from the reefs as possible, REEF has been organizing large events known as Lionfish Derbies. At these derbies, teams of 4 compete to see who can catch the most, the biggest, and the smallest, with large cash prizes for the best fish hunters. Not only do these events usually remove hundreds of the harmful species, it also attracts a large group of people who are interested in learning more. Education can be through filleting and preparation, public dissections, and simply answering any and all question people might have.
This summer I was able to help out at 3 official REEF derbies, and 2 sanctioned derbies. Locations included the Gold Coast, Abaco, Sarasota, Fort Lauderdale, and Palm Beach. My duties ranged from manning the merchandise table, to helping score fish, to filleting. Each was a fantastic time, with the excitement from the quick pace requiring efficiency, good communication, and duty flexibility that reminds one of the excitement and adrenaline from a good roller coaster or drift dive.
Until next time! Happy diving everyone