On October 2-4, REEF’s Invasive Species Program Coordinator, Dr. Alli Candelmo, and Environmental Leadership Intern, Sophie Costa, joined regional researchers, invasive species managers, divers, and ocean conservationists at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission 2018 Lionfish Summit. The summit addressed three main themes: Policy & Regulation, Control Efforts/Research & Monitoring and Education & Outreach. Alli presented as an invited speaker on the trends of ten years of REEF lionfish derbies and lionfish movement patterns and the application to improving removal efforts.
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A new scientific paper with results from REEF's Invasive Species Program research was recently published in the journal Conservation Science and Practice. The findings shed light on the factors affecting invasive lionfish intervention success and efficiency and how to best incorporate these findings into local management for invasive species. As part of a multi-year study with funding from NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program and others, REEF and partners coordinated regional efforts by divers to cull invasive lionfish on 33 U.S.
REEF is excited to announce the release of Invasive Lionfish: A Guide to Control and Management. Available as an e-book to view and/or download (formatted for desktop and mobile devices), this extensive manual was created to aid coastal managers and field workers in effectively managing the invasive lionfish problem.
We are excited to welcome a new member of the REEF staff! Alli Candelmo joined the team this week as the Invasive Species Program Coordinator. She comes to REEF with a wealth of experience in field biology, education, and conservation.
Alli attended Rutgers University where she obtained a Ph. D. in Ecology and Evolution.
This summer REEF, in partnership with Divers Direct and SeaGrant Florida, hosted its third annual Lionfish Derby Series. The series included four derbies in Florida (Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach, and Key Largo) and one in Green Turtle Key, Bahamas. The event series was a huge success—in total, 219 participants in 60 teams brought in a total of 2,694 lionfish!
Divers and snorkelers removed 1,518 invasive lionfish from Florida Keys waters during three Lionfish Derby events in 2011. Organized by REEF in partnership with the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, the Florida Keys Lionfish Derby series began in 2010 to engage local communities in addressing the invasive lionfish issue.
We are excited to share a new scientific paper that was published in the journal Global Change Biology last month. Researchers used REEF’s Volunteer Fish Survey Project database to answer crucial questions about the impacts of invasive lionfish as their range expands into new areas, such as Brazil. It is well known that predation by lionfish affects native fish populations, and this impact is likely exacerbated in certain vulnerable species.
If you haven't checked out the 2016 REEF Trips schedule yet, now's the time. We have an exciting lineup of destinations planned, and we hope you will join us. These trips offer a great introduction to fish identification for novice fishwatchers, and are a fun way for experienced surveyors to build their life-list while interacting with fellow ocean enthusiasts. We are also offering three of the ever-popular Invasive Lionfish Research Studies trips.
REEF, in collaboration with the University of Virgin Islands and Buck Island National Monument, took a major step last week in a novel study to better understand lionfish movement and factors that may influence that movement. The study, focusing on a 2km area of patch and continuous reef in St Croix, used innovative underwater tagging techniques pioneered by REEF to surgically implant transmitters into invasive lionfish within an array of receivers, allowing the team to pinpoint movement of the fish over the next year.
REEF Director of Special Projects, Lad Akins, has co-authored several recent scientific publications on the invasive lionfish in the western Atlantic, including: