Lionfish Eradication: Recipes, Killing Techniques, and Information

[lionfisher]

Hey, did you hear that REEF and the Fla Keys National Marine Sanctuary just announced their 2011 lionfish tournaments?

May 14 - Fiesta Key Resort, Long Key, Fla.
August 20 - Coconuts Restaurant, Key Largo, Fla.
November 5 - Hurricane Hole Marina and Restaurant, Key West, Fla.

Register online at Lionfish Derbies | Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF)
$150 for teams of up to four divers, gets you puncture resistance gloves or a catch bag, and banquet tix.

We're killing them anyway, might as well try for some cash and prizes while we're at it. $10,000 up for grabs during the whole series.

Discounts on accommodations and boat rentals too.
Fiesta Key Resort- (305) 554-0172. Special Derby Rates: $30 for tent site, $65 for R.V. site, $85 for standard room, $100 for room w/kitchen
Lime Tree Bay Resort- (305) 664-4740. Offering 25% off regular rates for derby participants.
Pier 68 Watersports- (305) 664-2233 (right next to Lime Tree Bay Resort). Offering 20% off of all boat rentals for derby participants.
Key Dives- (305) 664-2211 (in Islamorada). Offering $10 off for all derby participants.

Check it out: Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, Partner, to host Second Annual Lionfish Derby Series

 

[rjnjupiter]

It's official now so I'll tell you. Palm Beach County Reef Lionfish Derby. August 13. Over $5000 in cash and prizes. I will have details up on website in a few days. Look forward to your participation.

 

[Scott L]

It's official now so I'll tell you. Palm Beach County Reef Lionfish Derby. August 13. Over $5000 in cash and prizes. I will have details up on website in a few days. Look forward to your participation.

Cool. Thanks Randy!

 

[Lobstah Slayah]

Another one bites the dust...

 

[Lobstah Slayah]

RIP lionfish!

 

[jupitermermaid]

It's amazing how fast the lion fish are reproducing! I killed two lion fish yesterday that were the size of a legal hog snapper. A lot of tiny ones are also appearing now. We may never irradicate them, but for every one killed is another 30,000 less eggs that will be released each month. Lion fish.....the greenest food in Florida!

 

[Tandoorii]

I understand that dive ops (or the country) in the Bahamas do not allow divers to hunt LF (spears of all kinds) unless you are freediving. Is that true?

Hell, I cant even stay down as a freediver long enough to spot one, let alone spear one and bring it up safely. Surely this is an Exuma-rumor!

 

[stcroix]

It's amazing how fast the lion fish are reproducing! I killed two lion fish yesterday that were the size of a legal hog snapper. A lot of tiny ones are also appearing now. We may never irradicate them, but for every one killed is another 30,000 less eggs that will be released each month. Lion fish.....the greenest food in Florida!

That's big! Good job.

Check out the CORE Foundation's FB page. They are reporting on catches, equipment, techniques, and results of their dissection program. From their May post:

We removed 49 Lionfish that day and our research team dissected 38 of them for stomach content and more. The 38 fish that were dissected weighted almost 14 pounds. Out of the 38, 27 were males and 9 were females, which 3 had eggs. A lot of people have been asking what the egg sac looks like, you can see the egg sac in the second picture. Also see the size of our local fish the Lionfish are eating, the one pictured here is just over 3” long.

As LF are often seen in pairs or groups, one emerging assumption is that the larger ones are the females -and thus, should be the first ones targeted -as the others will sometimes skitter away after the first is shot. This assumption needs looking into.

 

[deepstops]

Not specifically related to Florida but this is great news. The Bahamian government is bending their rules about spearfishing on scuba to kill lionfish. Now let's hope the FWC eliminates the SW license requirement to kill lionfish on scuba.

From the liveaboard Juliet:

Dear Friends of Juliet Sailing and Diving,

We have some great news! The Bahamian Government has given us permission to take Lionfish on SCUBA. We had been doing some of this anyway, but now we are official. The Lionfish population has grown tremendously in the Bahamas, and we are doing what we can to hinder their progress. We have been working with Armor Products LLC to help them redesign their Lionfish catch bags. Their Next Generation bag was designed to our specifications.

If you would like to get into the battle, we have scheduled a Lionfish Round-Up aboard Juliet October 1-7, 2011. This will be a trip designed specifically to take and process as many Lionfish as possible. We will eat what we can and donate the remainder to a local sushi restaurant in Miami. As with all of our trips, we will be diving on some of the healthiest reefs in the Bahamas. We have noticed that the healthier reefs have more Lionfish due to a denser fish population.

If you are interested in join this or another charter, we have the following space available on upcoming trips:

July 2-8 Bahamas (3 spots) $1540
July 9-15 Bahamas (1 spot) $1540
July 16-22 Bahamas (2 spots) $1540
August 20-26 Bahamas (2 spots) $1540
September 10-16 Bahamas (10 spots) $1540
September 24-30 Bahamas (6 spots) $1540
October 1-7 Bahamas Lionfish Round-Up (12 spots) $1540
October 8-12 Bahamas 4-day (12 spots) $980
October 29-November 4 Dry Tortugas (7 spots) $1540
November 12-18 Florida Keys, Key West to Miami (10 spots) $1540
November 26- December 6 Repositioning Miami to Providenciales (10 spots) $2190

If you have any questions or would like to book your next vacation, please contact us at john@sailjuliet.com or 866-5-JULIET. Thank you for your continued support and patronage!

Fair Winds and Following Seas,
Captain John Beltramo
President
Juliet Sailing and Diving
(650) 906-4249
john@sailjuliet.com

 

[REEF HQ]

Hi everyone! Great to see all the interest in lionfish removal!

Just a reminder to keep your calendars clear for November 5- REEF's next lionfish derby will be happening at Hurricane Hole, Key West, FL! For more information and registration, click here and to check out the past derby results, click here.

Happy hunting!