# Lionfish Fishing Report



## Capt Dan Medina

one of them thee fellas might look pretty cool in a saltwater aquarium.....


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## Charlie

Actually, that was the fate of the live one in the bucket. He was still small enough top be put in a tank. They're cool fish, just not great for our native fish population.


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## TomFL

scary to see they've adapted so well to our environment. With no known predators here I'd bet we're in for a much worse situation as time goes bye. 

Good job thinning the heard!

-T


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## Capt Dan Medina

Pandion, if you guys can get another small one, let me know... Ive got a 45 gallon tank itching for something cool....


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## Swamp

There was a segment on NPR yesterday about lionfish. The guy claimed that there was only a small pocket of the Caribbean that was not infested. Reports of fish from South America to up the Atlantic coast are common. I don't remember how far up the Atlantic, but I know they are in the Carolinas. One of the things the expert mentioned that caught my attention was that they can grow up to half a meter! That is one big eating machine. The report also stated there are 12 other saltwater exotics documented in the wild. I know that there is some Asian Jelly fish that was talked about a few years ago. It was supposed to be the death of the Gulf, but I haven't heard boo in a long time. Anyone know what some of the others are?

Swamp


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## Brett

http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/unitedstates/fl.shtml

found the info fast, took a while to post, had to read it first...


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## Swamp

Thanks, I had forgotten about that site.  Unfortunately it is very deficient, there are more species and plants just in Florida than they mention for the whole country.

ETA: Found this site :http://fl.biology.usgs.gov/documents/2009fieldguide_Morris.
I can see the Anti Aquarium trade getting a lot of ammo from this. I had no idea there where as many tilapia species in Florida waters.


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## Brett

The site has state specific links on center top... 

Like I said, it took me a while to read it.


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## Charlie

IDK if any of the articles mention it, but I know there are confirmed sightings all the way to New York  
It's hard to find somewhere in the world that DOESN'T have invasive species. Hopefully the lionfish issue will start to be better control thru events like REEF's Lionfish Durby where one team alone removed 100+ lionfish!

sosstang: Alive might be hard for me  ;D I can let you know when I'm next going on one if you're seriouosly interested.


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## boggob

They caught one out of Eastpoint, near Apalachicola, in Franklin County.

FWC Discovers Non-Native Lionfish in Gulf of Mexico – Researchers with the FWC’s Fish and Wildlife Research Institute collected two juvenile red lionfish (Pterois volitans) last week from the Gulf of Mexico. With the exception of a probable aquarium release from the Tampa Bay area, the discovery of these lionfish marks the first time this nonnative species has been documented in Gulf waters north of the Tortugas and the Yucatan Peninsula.
FWC researchers found the lionfish in the catch from two separate net tows taken at distances of 99 and 160 miles off the southwest coast of Florida, north of the Dry Tortugas and west of Cape Romano. The specimens were taken from depths of 183 and 240 feet as part of a trawl survey funded by the Southeast Area Monitoring and Assessment Program, a cooperative state and federal program. FWC scientists believe the two juvenile lionfish, measuring approximately 2.5 inches in length, are either evidence of a spawning population on the Gulf of Mexico’s West Florida Shelf or they were transported to the area by ocean currents from other potential spawning areas, such as the waters off the Yucatan Peninsula. Either of these scenarios could indicate an expansion of the range of this species in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. Lionfish are nonnative, venomous fish that have been sighted in Atlantic coastal waters of the United States since the mid-1990s and have been reported more recently in the waters of the Florida Keys and Dry Tortugas. Lionfish, specifically the red lionfish and the devil firefish, appear to have established populations in the western North Atlantic Ocean. These species are native to the reefs and rocky crevices of the Indo-Pacific, but were likely introduced into South Florida waters in 1992.
To report sightings of lionfish, call the nationwide reporting number (877-STOPANS) sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) or fill out an online report on the USGS website at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/sightingreport.asp. For more information about lionfish, visit the USGS website. Go to MyFWC.com/Nonnatives to learn more about nonnative species in Florida.

Update: Here is the article I was looking for (not sure if the wtxl link still works:

http://www.wtxl.com/global/story.asp?s=13287423

A venomous and invasive fish not native to the gulf is starting to make an appearance in our coastal waters for the very first time. It has fish and wildlife experts concerned.

A lionfish was caught near Eastpoint in Franklin County. Scott Hardin with Florida Fish and Wildlife says it's the first time they have seen this fish in this part of the gulf. He says in recent years the fish population has exploded out of the Caribbean region. Even though the fish is small it doesn't have many predators and it can eat food other fish rely on in reef areas where it is most often seen. The fish can sting and it can be painful to people but not poisonous.

If you hook a lionfish the Fish and Wildlife folks want you to report it.

To report sightings of lionfish, call the nationwide reporting number (877-STOPANS) sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) or fill out an online report on the USGS website at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/sightingreport.asp.

For more information about lionfish, visit the USGS website at http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/FactShee ... ciesID=963. Go to

MyFWC.com/Nonnative to learn more about nonnative species in Florida.


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## Guest

Sorry, but they are here to stay!

Diving out of Jupiter/West Palm there are a lot. I was spearfishing with a friend who speared 13 on one dive at 120' and limited time on 32%. They are pretty thick from 120'-150'. Nature will respond and start to thin them out so we have a balance. They are now just another of the 900 species of invasive species of plants and animals Florida now has. 

I have dove with tons of them in the Indian Ocean and still think they are a very cool fish! IMO, this has been blown way out of control. I have seen them as far N. as NC again mostly in the 120'-150' depth which the seem to prefer.

IMO, these rod a current here and there is no way this giant population came from people letting them go as pets.

Like I said nature has a way of responding and the last thing that needs to be done is to start a population of invasive predator's to feed on them.


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## Charlie

I'm not sure if anyone mentioned this early, but DNA testing of the Lionfish population in Florida has shown that these fish all originate from just five distinct specimens.  

I'm pretty sure they're here to stay as well, and we can hope that nature will do her job and keep the population down, but I can give a hand as well  ;D


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