Barbados Lionfish Derby 2018 January 28
Invasive Lionfish could soon threaten BARBADOS reefs - 11/24/2008
Barbados
Eastern Caribbean
West Indies
Western Atlantic
NOAA Technical Memorandum NOS NCCOS 2
LIONFISH = Quick facts
Information, Resources, Tutorials, Hand nets, Safe handling practices, Eat 'Em to Beat 'Em, Lion Fish Cookbook, Restaurants serving Lionfish, Places to sell Lionfish, Stay upto date - a great example for Barbados to follow............
June 2014 - CERMES CONNECTIONS - Cave Hill Campus
Hazel A. Oxenford - University of the West Indies, Barbados
Spreading the word in Cuba, April 2014
Trip Advisor - Barbados - South Point - Surfing - Lion Fish ????
BATH & and lets go Lionfishing - BARBADOS 11/18/2013
Barbados - Three component draft management plan - 5/26/2014.
Barbados Dive Business Leaders attending the Captains Meeting - Dec 13, 2015
Woody Coulson, President of the Barbados Divers Association with the largest Lionfish of the 2014 Derby
Lionfish have been in Barbados media since 2008..
Education, Employment, Environment.
EDUCATION: creating widespread community and business awareness, training and promotion of idea's for practicle purposes.
EMPLOYMENT: Creation of a venture where local fisherfolk sell to a reputable distributer for preparation/packaging for the convenience of restaurants.
ENVIRONMENT: In years to come we hope our environment will adapt to Lionfish - for now the environment requires our assistance.
Education
GET THE OUR KIDS INVOLVED !!
It's amazing what children absorb mentally and an afternoon at the beach that coinsides with a Lionfish Event is a huge learning experience. SCUBA DIVERS, SPEAR FISHERMEN, BOATS, EQUIPMENT, FUNNY LOOKING FISH, FISH PREPARATION, COOKING, HOT FOOD and so much more.
Ask a child what noise they think a Lionfish makes - sets the scene for an interesting conversation....
AWARENESS
UWI/CERMES are leading the charge in Barbados. As permanent dedicated professionals they play their part in educating students, the community and business as a true data resouce.
Are LionfIsh numbers really increasing? Where are they most prominent in Barbados? How long until the environment adapts? Are we seeing large groups or smaller groups in isolated area's? Are they a healthier fish to eat opposed to our fish-pot catches?
DATA is imperitive for any form of success.
LIONFISH - A FISH FOOD !!!!
Attendance at the 2014 Barbados Lionfish Derby highlighted the amount of local interest in Lion Fish. The public enjoying prepared dishes complimentory of Executive Chefs from our finest hotels.
Will a local entity take steps to innitiate a system that will see Barbados benefit as much as possible from the arrival of this very good looking, tasty yet invasive preditor?
What would "steps" look like ?
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Creation of portal where fisherfolk trust they can sell fresh LionfIsh daily to a reliable buyer.
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An entity to prepare, package, distribute fresh/airsealed fish on a reliable basis.
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Reputation: offering a service you can deliver on.
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Premium Restaurants delivering Lionfish inclusive dishes alongside their additional premium products. The price of a dish will now be determined on Quality, Service and Surroundings.
All photographs from single dives or spearfishing session.
Enough said?
What is required for Lionfish to be profitable at the most Basic Level?
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training - lionfish
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ability to swim
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spear - hand, band, air powered
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protectiion - gloves, mask/snorkel, line or bag
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scissors/knife
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take home and prepare opposed to buying fish as protein
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the right attitude
What is required to be profitable from Lionfish at Intermediate Level?
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Basic requirements
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boat
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dive / spearfishing buddies
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scuba / spearfishing equipment
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local contacts - family friends, market, restaurant, beach bar
Commercial:
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Reliable source
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Kitchen and Staff
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Packaging, Marketing, Delivery, Clients
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Reputation
Employment
Lionfish Invasion History
• Two visually identical species of lionfish (Pterois miles and P.volitans) were introduced into the Atlantic via the US aquarium trade beginning in the 1980’s
• Lionfish invaded range is North Carolina to South America including the Gulf of Mexico
• Lionfish have established throughout most of the Caribbean in less than five years
Biology
• Lionfish may live decades and reach sizes exceeding 47cm (19 in)
• Lionfish inhabit all marine habitat types and depths (shoreline to over 300m or 1000ft)
• Lionfish possess venomous spines capable of deterring predators and inflicting mild to serious stings and reactions in humans
• Lionfish temperature tolerance is approximately 10‐35°C (50‐95°F)
• Lionfish become sexually mature in less than a year and spawn in pairs
• Reproduction occurs throughout the year about every 4 days
• In the Caribbean, a single female lionfish can spawn over 2 million eggs/year
• Lionfish eggs are held together in a gelatinous mass of 12,000 to 15,000 eggs and are dispersed at the ocean’s surface by currents
• Their larval duration is approximately 25 days
Ecology
• Lionfish can reach densities of over 200 adults per acre
• Lionfish are generalist carnivores that consume over 70 species of fish and many invertebrate species,
capable of eating prey up to half their body length
• Many lionfish prey on commercially, recreationally, and ecologically important species
• Dense lionfish populations can consume more than 460,000 prey fish/acre/year
• On heavily invaded sites, lionfish have reduced their fish prey populations by up to 90% and continue to
consume native fishes at unsustainable rates
• Native predators exhibit avoidance for lionfish
• Lionfish are susceptible to very few parasites compared to native species
• Lionfish exhibit site fidelity
• Lionfish have a high affinity for structure and feed primarily during dawn and dusk
Control
• Lionfish are edible and considered a delicacy
• Local removal efforts that are sustained can significantly reduce lionfish
Environment
