Ouch! Got stung by a Lion Fish this afternoon!

[gopbroek]

Do you really believe they can be stopped by recreational scuba divers?

It's a worthy endeavor. Where there is diving and restaurants servering Pez Leon, they are getting in short supply.

 

[divad]

It's a worthy endeavor. Where there is diving and restaurants servering Pez Leon, they are getting in short supply.

Lion fish only congregate near dive resorts and restaurants?

 

[drrich2]

Recreational divers cannot eliminate lion fish. They can greatly reduce population densities in some actively dove reef areas, in hopes of providing a 'reservation' for other species to inhabit. What the ecological benefit of this will be I don't know, but it may be of some benefit. If I had to choose between lion fish swarming 90% of reef habitat, or 100% of it, I'd pick the 90%.

Richard.

 

[CuzzA]

The ecosystem is adapting. We have reports of them being found in the bellies of red grouper and other species of fish. Eventually the system will find a balance.

While I certainly wish they weren't here, my glass half full optimism is they are an excellent resource and it doesn't matter if they are sustainable or not.

Not to mention they may be the best tasting fish in the Atlantic/Gulf.

 

[Bubblesong]

Do you really believe they can be stopped by recreational scuba divers?

Lion fish only congregate near dive resorts and restaurants?

Alright you, Divad the Dire, maybe we WONT win, but we will go down fighting, speargun in one hand, grilling fork in the other, flying the red and white Belligerent Battle Banner, (red for lionfish blood, white for tasty lionfish fillets!) and someday epic tales will be told of an heroic Warrior named Pete, and his doomed yet inspiring stories of Spine Vs Spear.

 

[divad]

I thought groupers were starting to eat them. That sounds more promising than relying soley (no pun intended) on resort scuba divers to keep them in check. It may be more productive to just kill them and leave them for other fish to feed on and develop a taste for.

 

[CuzzA]

It's not the resort divers, it's the hard core spearos who clean up on them every week until the next batch shows up from the deep.

I know our spots are relatively free of them because we harvest every one we see.