TIGblogs - Dennis Dames

Lionfish On The Menu?
BY VANESSA C. ROLLE -
Nassau, Bahamas:

The venomous lionfish, an invasive predator with a taste for immature grouper and lobster, is starting to show up on Bahamian menus, and marine biologist Dr. Stefan Harzen does not think that’s a bad idea.

Dr. Harzen said during his $150,000 expedition to explore the waters off Petersen’s Cay in Grand Bahama in a quest to create the first biodiversity map in the region, he came across the lionfish.

"We did see a few lionfish in The Bahamas. Before, we saw them in the Gold Rock Creek wetland. We saw many in the canals around here and we saw some in the coral reef area of Petersen’s Cay," said Dr. Harzen.

The lionfish is an invasive species, he said, and The Bahamas would do well to get rid of it. There are different ways to get rid of it, he said.

"Clearly, we have to do everything we possibly can to decimate it. I think that anyone who sees one and has any type of tool to kill one, just do it. But you ought to be extremely careful. You can injure yourself and endanger your health if you don’t handle them right," Dr. Harzen said.

A native of the Indo-Pacific region, the juvenile lionfish measures between three and four inches long. It was discovered by aquarium divers on an expedition in the Atlantic waters of The Bahamas several months ago.

Dr. Harzen said that he was made aware by local sustainable development authorities that there are now special training classes on Grand Bahama to educate people on how to catch, handle and prepare the lionfish.

"Personally, I would like to say that I would rather not try it, but that does not mean that many of you (should) not try. If that’s a way of doing it, it might actually turn out to be quite successful," he said.

"I think the idea is, and I hope that this is not misunderstood in the way I say this, otherwise I apologize in advance, the idea is if you get Bahamians to eat it, they will go out there in huge numbers and try to catch it," he quipped.

The December issue of Dive Training Magazine highlighted that one way to combat the lionfish might be to give it economic value as food source.

The article said that this is already being done in North Carolina where some fishermen have started to include them in boxes of mixed catch, sold, skinned and filleted at a discounted price.

It also noted that venom from the lionfish does not taint the meat and that those who have tasted it say it is quite good.

Dr. Harzen said that there is a call by the Marine Resource Department to report any sighting of lionfish.

"So if you see some, you can do two things. You can kill it and report it or you can just report it. But do report it, it’s a worthwhile effort," Dr. Harzen said.

"In the meantime, if you happen to be spearfishing and you see a lionfish, just kill and then extract it from the ocean and basically put it in the garbage can. It’s better than to leave it out there. That is one way where you can be absolutely sure that you’re doing the right thing," he said.

Recently, Deputy Director of Marine Resources, Edison Deleveaux noted that the lionfish has become very common in The Bahamas.

There is also the issue of the species having no natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean.

At that time Mr. Deleveaux said, "The information we have is that they have been observed eating our commercially viable species like grunts and groupers and these are matters which are still being investigated."

"If these stories are true, this can have a profound impact on our commercial fishing industry, in that they are feeding on the various species that form the basis of this sector."

The local fishing sector brought in $92 million last year and $100 million in 2005.

In an effort to establish an invasion management program and policy development, The Department of Marine Resources in collaboration with the College of The Bahamas Marine and Environmental Studies Institute (COB-MESI) recently launched an online Lionfish Sighting Survey.

The survey allows ecological research to determine what affects the lionfish invasion has on local marine resources.

Lionfish are dangerous with venomous dorsal, anal and pelvic spines which can cause nausea and vomiting, redness and swelling around the wound, as well as headaches and seizures.

If wounded by a lionfish spine the treatment is heat therapy. Medical treatment should also be sought.

September 11, 2008