Divers Capture a Total of 1500 Invasive Lionfish in 2011 Florida Keys Lionfish Derby

Saturday 5th November 2011 saw the final event of the 2011 Florida Keys Lionfish Derby take place in Key West, Florida where 312 invasive lionfish were captured from the ocean waters.

The 2011 Florida Keys Lionfish Derby was organised by Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary and Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF), and over a series of events throughout the year, 1,500 lionfish were caught with the help of scuba diving enthusiasts and volunteers.

The final leg of the derby took place on Saturday 5th November at Hurricane Hole Marina in Key West and registered divers battled it out to win $3,500 of cash and prizes.

Image by Mark Lightfoot, on Flickr.

Scuba diving team "Bottle Buddies" from Key West triumphed during the event and won themselves the $1,000 top prize for the most lionfish caught in the single day event (110 fish), as well as netting the $500 top prize in the category for the biggest lionfish with a 13.5-inch fish.

Team "Austin Assassins" from Austin in Texas, won $500 for the smallest lionfish caught measuring at 3.14 inches.

The purpose of the annual event is to try and remove the invasive Indo-Pacific red lionfish from the waters of Florida Keys because they are causing damage to fragile reef systems. The non-native species are thought to have found their way into the ocean after being carelessly released into the waters by people who kept them in aquariums during the 1980s.

Image by berniedup, on Flickr.

Lionfish have venomous spiky tentacles that are not only used to catch prey but can also be dangerous to fisherman and divers. They are territorial towards other reef fish and because they have no known predators, they pose a threat to delicate reef systems. By removing the fish, native species are able to grow and balance can be restored to the fragile coral ecosystem in Florida Keys.

The Lionfish derby was open to all certified scuba divers, from professional divers to tourists taking scuba diving holidays in the area.

This year's event saw more than twice the number of lionfish caught compared to the efforts in 2010 where 644 lionfish were captured and destroyed. The Florida Keys Lionfish Derby was established last year to raise awareness of the marine predator and educate the dive community on the safe handling and collection of the disruptive creatures while scuba diving in Florida.

Image by directdivers, on Flickr.

Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey collected tissue samples from lionfish caught throughout the series of events so they can find out more about lionfish feeding ecology and the impact it has on the marine environment.