Lionfish Curiosity

For some folks it may be news, but not for others. It has been while that lionfish is considered danger for our Caribbean Reefs. It is a non-natuve predator fish. They are invasive to this ocean. Some people described lionfish as a formidable predator that can devastate fish populations wherever it feeds. For the past 3 years Terry and I noticed that we cannot find easy any of the juvenile angelfishes, gobies and some other species. We are collectors for fish tank, but the is not much of demand for selling these guys. Another way that the Florida state found to promote the eradication of the lionfish is promoting annual derbies in the FL Keys. Read more here. And you would never imagine: LIONFISH IS A GREAT FISH to be consumed. It is Delicious! I've tried myself. Most of our divings we come across to lionfishes that size varies between 5" to 12". We must kill it and most of the time we do not bring to the boat due to the amount of work between not getting poked by their venomous spikes and the live tropical collected critters. So, it is a waste of flavorful meal. BUT, if you want to give it a try, eat Lionfish. There are many recipes online, but be careful. It takes a lot to fillet it. See this video how to safely fillet a lionfish. It seems cruel fro some hobbyists but the reality is that if the lionfish eats the other fishes from the reefs, our reefs will be completely unbalanced and consequently dead. So, let promote to eradicate this evasive specie from the Atlantic Ocean. Some people believes that to have saltwater tropical fish in a tank is wrong and others criticizes that we are marine life collectors (even thou very well regulated by the state). All of these people do not realize that nature causes more damage they we humans with our hobbies. Well, this is the way I think. It doesn't mean that I am right or wrong... PS: I will proof read later... Tiredness is knocking at my door. Bye