March Goes in Like a Lion

As you likely know, as of right now the family is located in Puerto Rico. It is a beautiful island, full of things to do and see. I love this place, and I wish we could come here every year. Unfortunately, Puerto Rico has quite a problem with invasive species, similar to the Florida Everglades just up north. On land there are many invasive creatures, like pythons, mongooses and cats. In the water there are are a variety of invasive creatures, but one of the most damaging and common is the lionfish.

Lionfish are extremely beautiful creatures, with striped skin and many beautiful frills and crests, which some think appear similar to a lion’s mane, hence their name. Unfortunately, those many stunning embellishments are part of the reason for their problem as an invasive species, as almost every one has a venomous spine on it. This makes it impossible for many reef predators to consume them, allowing their populations to run rampant. Their beauty is also the reason for people bringing them from their native Pacific into the Atlantic via the pet trade. Lionfish, though carnivorous, don’t grow particularly large so they are of little threat to most full grown fish. However, they can decimate the population of juvenile fish on the reef leading to an extreme decline of native marine species.

Due to the native predators of the Atlantic either not knowing to eat lionfish, or being unable to, there are many human run methods of trying to get the population to zero. The most common is the KOS policy, or the Kill On Sight policy. This just means that every time anyone with the ability to kill them gets the chance to kill a lionfish, they try to. For example, if a fisherman caught one he would cut off its head, even if he might be doing catch and release normally. Many places where lionfish are a problem have a bounty on their heads, to add extra incentive. There is also a company Inversa Leather, that pays fishermen for lionfish corpses and makes them into leather. I recently killed my first and second lionfish ever, and I can vouch for personally that the third biggest reason to kill lionfish, other than what I’ve already mentioned, is that they taste delicious!

I really enjoy swimming in the ocean and seeing all of the beautiful fish, and I’m sure others reading this do too. However, unless lionfish and other invasive species are removed, we may not have these reefs for much longer. Invasive species are a serious problem, and it is important to help control them in any way you can, whether that be by directly killing them, or other methods like donating to organizations who remove them from the wild.