Does anyone feel that culling invasive lionfish is a bad thing?

[Doc]

....and they're definitely being hunted by some grouper and morays.

The money is on the eggs. Something likes the taste of the eggs.

Is hunting them a "bad" thing? No.

It is however, a fool's errand.

Only the hubris of man, which created this, could also have him believe he could "fix" it.

 

[gcarter]

The money is on the eggs. Something likes the taste of the eggs.

Is hunting them a "bad" thing? No.

It is however, a fool's errand.

Only the hubris of man, which created this, could also have him believe he could "fix" it.

^^^^^^^^

This!

 

[drrich2]

Lion fish are here to stay. The real question then is whether these 'reservations' (of low lion fish population density from hunting) to provide habitat for their native species prey will make a meaningful difference. That may be worthwhile.

Richard.

 

[chillyinCanada]

I swear I read that the aquarium trade was still bringing in lions from the pacific.


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Grrrr . . .

I've always got to bite my tongue when someone keeping fish in an aquarium tell me they love fish. Perhaps I could get on board if the fish are specifically raised for that purpose. Having seen how fish are taken for the aquarium trade so disgusted me that I still have this visceral reaction.

That said, taking the Caribbean lionfish for the trade would make more sense to me than importing.

 

[FishLovingStudent]

I am a marine researcher, an avid SCUBA diver, and *gasp* an aquarium hobbyist so it goes without saying that I love the marine world (feel free to bite your tongue.)

While I agree the aquarium trade is not without its evils (cyanide and dynamite fishing to name two horrible ones) it isn't so black and white. For example a fishermen can sell to an aquarium trade exporter a fish (say a Queen Angelfish or a Blue Hippo Tang) for many times the amount he would at the local fish mart. More money into the local economy means more emphasis on collecting fewer fish for more profit, pushes away less profitable illegal activities, and promotes more marine stewardship programs (after all, try convincing a fishermen he can't fish anymore because some big wigs from the west says he cant, offer a better alternative though...)

The aquarium trade is moving towards more sustainable sourcing anyways, consumers are becoming more willing to pay the premium for aquacultured and net caught as they become more prevalent in the trade (and closing in on price too).

Just tired of seeing the aquarium trade getting such a bad rep when it is not that simple. There is a reason most conservation groups don't look at it as seriously as pollution, climate change, nutrient run off, etc etc. Heck, they could probably find a negative impact of diving on marine systems.

Off-topic, sorry. But yes, I am surprised Lionfish aren't being given away from aquarium stores considering their prevalence haha.

Grrrr . . .

I've always got to bite my tongue when someone keeping fish in an aquarium tell me they love fish. Perhaps I could get on board if the fish are specifically raised for that purpose. Having seen how fish are taken for the aquarium trade so disgusted me that I still have this visceral reaction.

That said, taking the Caribbean lionfish for the trade would make more sense to me than importing.

 

[seeker242]

Thanks for the response, would you care to elaborate?

Would you object to killing the fish yourself for reasons like not believing it is morally right or is it just along the lines of not feeling comfortable killing something. Whats your opinion on the issue as a whole?

For me personally, it's against my religion because I'm a Buddhist

 

[scoobydrew]

For me personally, it's against my religion because I'm a Buddhist

OK, thanks again

 

[100days-a-year]

Lionfish move around in an area.I dive the some of the same reefs several times a year to harvest them and some only give them up once.Some areas are worse some years and bare others.

The density on the shelf edge from Jax to NC is pretty consistent and increasing.Being one of only a handful of guys diving it and about the only one harvesting them I feel confident on any given dive I can get a minimum of 10 pounds and up to 50.

 

[Akimbo]

Not sure how authoritative this is, but interesting.

Top 5 Myths About Lionfish | National Geographic (blogs)

 

[scoobydrew]

Not sure how authoritative this is, but interesting.

Top 5 Myths About Lionfish | National Geographic (blogs)

If you want to shoot lionfish in Grand Cayman then you need to first complete a course to receive a culling license, the course was made by the Department of Environment (DoE). Each of the five facts on this link feature somewhere in the DoE presentation and I think are generally agreed upon to be accurate