The lionfish population has exploded in the Atlantic off the coast of Florida and the Bahamas. On a recent trip to the Bahamas, on some dives, I saw dozens of lionfish. I've heard reports of increasing sightings in the Caribbean as well.
This is no small problem --as has been mentioned, these are exotic fish with a voracious appetite and no natural predators in this part of the world. They essentially eat anything smaller than them. Lionfish attain maturity relatively quickly and they are prodigious spawners making the situation even worse.
I don't normally support the mass hunting of any wildlife but this is a problem that governments and NGOs should start working on quickly. It may be too late, but I firmly believe a coordinated eradication program is called for where Lionfish have invaded.
I wrote more extensively about this here:
Lionfish Danger if you are interested in reading more about it.
There is one small ray of sunshine: I've heard a couple of reports that Trumpetfish have been seen stalking Lionfish. Apparently the Trumpetfish can get in between the venomous dorsal spines. I have not independently confirmed this nor have I seen any evidence of it first hand. There are also reports of Groupers with the remains of Lionfish in their stomachs, so perhaps some of the native Groupers will get a taste for these critters --but I'm not terribly hopeful.
Frankly, it may be too late but I'm not convinced of that yet.
Jeff
