davelin315 June 20, 2014 Share June 20, 2014 Just curious as to what your opinions were of the FWC banning the importation of 8 species within the genus Pterois, including P. volitans. There are a number of hobbyists warning against this ban as they feel it's a slippery slope, but my own personal (and perhaps professional as a former public aquarium person) opinion is that this is a good thing. The map linked below shows the spread of the lionfish along the Atlantic from Florida. http://nas.er.usgs.gov/queries/SpeciesAnimatedMap.aspx?speciesID=963 My thoughts are that we as a collective group of hobbyists (this includes all hobbyists from the expert to the people that impulse buy a saltwater fish and then discover that it's not as easy as dumping some table salt into a bowl of water and presto change-o you have a saltwater tank) have shown that we cannot handle fish like the lionfish. The release of this genus into Atlantic waters has reached plague proportions and there is no feasible way to stop them from spreading further and further. Thus far, our own Chesapeake Bay has been spared, my guess is because of lower salinity due to the brackish nature of most of it, but if these invasive fish get into there, think of the damage that will be done to not only our own fisheries, but to all of the tropics as this fertile breeding and spawning ground is wiped clean of all but the lionfish... For information on the slippery slope argument, see Ret Talbot and his Good Catch blog: http://rettalbot.wordpress.com/ I, myself, view these species as an extremely dangerous threat to the Atlantic. I even took one of the lionfish I inherited from NADC to my kids' elementary school the other day and did a series of presentations on them and how they are an invasive species, most likely brought about by the careless nature of hobbyists releasing these into the wild. As a conservationist and a hobbyist, my thoughts are that this took too long to enact... not much different from Caulerpa being banned in California to me - look at the harm it has done there for an example of too little too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind June 20, 2014 Share June 20, 2014 I think it is too late for any ban on the species. They already have a strong foothold and this will not do much to slow their spread. They are basically here to stay, that is until another predator adds them to the menu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 I think the ban is good...better to not bring anymore in...as even in my old stomping grounds just south of Jacksonville they are being found...in plague proportions...they are having fishing derbies to catch as many as they can in48hours... Whether a hurricane or unknowing, lazy, or careless hobbiests we have to try an not bring anymore in that could be added to the problem... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dave w June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 It is easy to say this with perfect hindsight, but they are 10 years too late in this ban. If they'd done it back then it may have been possible to put a tiny genie back in the bottle. It's way too late now. But perhaps we can learn from the lionfish and project onto some other similar fish like the Australian stonefish. I've never had a stonefish and some people may love them, but I wouldn't mind a ban on them if biologists predicted that they could flourish in the Caribbean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gmerek2 June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 They should only be caught in waters they are not native to for sale in fish stores. Might put a tiny dent in the population. Then force us all to keep them as punishment Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 By the way, I don't know if they would do well at Chesapeake temperatures, but brackish water is no problem. Coral reef alliance just linked to a 6th grade girls science project where her and her dad had one long term at 5ppt saltwater. Nice quote from a prof at NC State was something like "most influential sixth grade science fair project ever." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lnevo June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 Some scientists took that a step further and they were able to go full freshwater to some degree I believe. I'm pretty sure the point if the ban was to have the fish harvested locally for sale. It wasnt a ban on sales or export, but on import. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makai531 June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 I used to snorkel some beautiful areas in Andros, Bahamas 30 years ago. Went back 8 years ago and it was all gone, decimated, with a lion fish sighting every 10 feet or so. The round ups are a great idea and I understand they are quite tasty. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlanM June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 They are cool looking aquarium fish. Too bad it had to get ruined like it did, but it sure would be great if the Japanese could be convinced that they were a delicacy to get them overfished for a while, heh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smallreef June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 Hhrrmmm lionfish sushi...I'll have to look into that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 June 21, 2014 Author Share June 21, 2014 Hhrrmmm lionfish sushi...I'll have to look into that! Buy a lionfish cookbook from REEF! http://www.reef.org/catalog/cookbook Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coral Hind June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 I think the ban is good...better to not bring anymore in...as even in my old stomping grounds just south of Jacksonville they are being found...in plague proportions...they are having fishing derbies to catch as many as they can in48hours... Whether a hurricane or unknowing, lazy, or careless hobbiests we have to try an not bring anymore in that could be added to the problem... Any ban is just a start to more and more regulation of the hobby. I fear that the people that seek to control the hobby will keep the momentum going once it starts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DuffyGeos June 21, 2014 Share June 21, 2014 I think the only way to even put a dent in the populations on the reefs is to have a mandatory kill on site requirement for all divers and fishermen. This will only work on the reefs that have divers visiting them. On one of our last dive trips they were all over the Cayman Islands. Our dive master explained what he was going to do before each dive, and probably killed 10 a dive. He said he does it every dive and has seen some reduction on his favorite reefs that he is on once a week. So I watched him kill over 100 in a week, and he said that he has done that on all his dives for 2-3 years. They breed faster then rabbits, and have no natural predators. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
motti June 22, 2014 Share June 22, 2014 I think the only way to even put a dent in the populations on the reefs is to have a mandatory kill on site requirement for all divers and fishermen. This will only work on the reefs that have divers visiting them. On one of our last dive trips they were all over the Cayman Islands. Our dive master explained what he was going to do before each dive, and probably killed 10 a dive. He said he does it every dive and has seen some reduction on his favorite reefs that he is on once a week. So I watched him kill over 100 in a week, and he said that he has done that on all his dives for 2-3 years. They breed faster then rabbits, and have no natural predators. When we dove little cayman on 2010, the DM killed at least 4-5 in each dive. they are everywhere over there. seeing that map is really sad. I think the ban is too little too late. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davelin315 June 22, 2014 Author Share June 22, 2014 Any ban is just a start to more and more regulation of the hobby. I fear that the people that seek to control the hobby will keep the momentum going once it starts. I wonder, though, of it really is. The ban only limits importing them, but does nothing to aquaculture of them or capturing them in the Atlantic in Florida waters. I have not seen an explosion of legislation against freshwater species after piranhas and snakeheads were outlawed in some places, but truth be told I don't monitor freshwater laws all that much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan June 24, 2014 Share June 24, 2014 (edited) It's better than doing nothing. I agree especially since there are so many people who start out in this hobby, no different than the snake keepers and the like, not understanding how important it is to be responsible about it and decide to irresponsibly get out by dumping their critters all over the place. So since the hobbyist cannot be controlled the goods have to be unavailable.There are many hobby's like this.We have a huge problem here with anaconda and pythons. Anacondas are of more concern. there are standing orders to shoot and kill if spotted. They are thriving here in the Everglades. Alligators will eat small pythons, boas, etc.. but some are no match for the large anacondas and can even become prey.Unfortunately I think regulating needs to start with the importers, breeders and distributors/vendors. There are some that have a conscience or don;t want to be bothered and others who will get you what you want as long as you pay for it. Very irresponsible. But something needs to change somewhere. Edited June 24, 2014 by Jans Natural Reef Foods Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jan June 24, 2014 Share June 24, 2014 (edited) Yes. She discovered that they can survive in fresh water. A huge concern....but how much time did she give it to make sure that they can really thrive on a FW diet? By the way, I don't know if they would do well at Chesapeake temperatures, but brackish water is no problem.Coral reef alliance just linked to a 6th grade girls science project where her and her dad had one long term at 5ppt saltwater. Nice quote from a prof at NC State was something like "most influential sixth grade science fair project ever." Edited June 24, 2014 by Jans Natural Reef Foods Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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