Key Largo

Invasive Lionfish Found at Key Largo’s Harry Harris Beach

By KEVIN WADLOW
kwadlow@keynoter.com
Saturday, April 10, 2010 06:00 AM EDT

Alecia Adamson and Lad Akins capture a small lionfish from inside a protected swim area at Harry Harris Park on Thursday. Sightings of the nonnative lionfish are becoming more common in Keys waters.

A lionfish capture Thursday took only minutes, but it ranks as one of the most worrisome lionfish incidents yet in Florida Keys waters. The juvenile lionfish, measuring just under two inches long, was captured in the shallow water of an enclosed swim area at Harry Harris County Park in Tavernier.

“We don’t want people to panic, but this is a little disturbing,” said Lad Akins of the Reef Environmental Education Foundation, looking at the park’s beach, crowded even on a weekday afternoon. Akins, one of the best-known experts in lionfish eradication in Florida and Caribbean waters, and REEF associate Alecia Adamson netted and bagged the lionfish near a culvert on the west side of the Harry Harris swim basin.

The swim area is completely surrounded by a stony seawall, but three large culverts allow water exchange. Grates in the culverts screen large animals out but even an adult lionfish could pass in the grate openings. “We’ve had some lionfish sightings near shore before, but nothing like this,” Akins said. “It shows the value of early detection and rapid response.”

In the 14 months since January 2009, when the first lionfish was spotted in Keys waters, there have been 119 sightings in Monroe County waters, with 71 lionfish captured. Most have been juveniles, but fish up to 9 inches have been taken locally. Lionfish are an invasive species, a Pacific Ocean fish notable for its array of feathery plumed spines. All of the spines pack a strong venom jolt for swimmers or divers who are stuck. Lionfish stings are extremely painful and can cause respiratory problems but are not usually fatal.

Lionfish are not aggressive toward swimmers or divers, but they often do not shy away from humans. It is possible to hit one by accident. “Some of the big ones are curious. They’ll come up to see what a diver is doing,” Akins said.

The species may have gained a foothold along the U.S. coast and the Caribbean when hurricanes flooded South Florida, or when private owners released them when they outgrew home tanks. Biologists worry the fast-breeding and ravenous lionfish have no natural enemies in Atlantic waters and could become a threat to native fish populations. In areas like the Bahamas, lionfish have overwhelmed reefs.

Since March 31, six lionfish sightings have been reported locally to staff with the Mote Marine Laboratory and the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. “We expected this, since it’s getting warmer and more people get back into the water,” sanctuary spokeswoman Karrie Carnes said.

A tropical-fish collector spotted one this week at a piling near the Niles Channel Bridge in the Lower Keys. Other recent sightings have come from the Bibb shipwreck in about 130 feet of water off Key Largo, and the Aquarius underwater marine laboratory site at Conch Reef off Islamorada. Staff with the state Fish and Wildlife Research Institute found a lionfish inside an experimental lobster trap in the Gulf of Mexico north of the Seven Mile Bridge.

An Ocala couple, Darby and Tammy Dugan, recognized the lionfish at Harry Harris Park on Wednesday while taking pictures of sea life. “They told the staff at Ocean Divers about it, and Ocean Divers knew to call it in,” Akins said. “The fish was exactly where the Dugans said they saw it.” The Keys sanctuary held a September training session on lionfish capture, and issued 100 permits to dive-operation staff to use nets or slurp guns to take lionfish they see inside Sanctuary Preservation Areas, where all harvest of fish usually is banned.

“Our goal is to control lionfish, especially in areas like the SPAs,” Carnes said. “It’s not really feasible to say we can eradicate them, given the ocean currents and increasing numbers of lionfish.” Another training session for lionfish removal is being planned for later this year.

Meanwhile, staff at the REEF headquarters in Key Largo is working with federal marine biologists to prepare a lionfish cookbook, in hopes of raising awareness of the lionfish as a food fish. Divers and snorkelers who sight a lionfish should call local reporting hotlines: (305) 852-0030 or (305) 395-8730.

Key Largo Pennekamp Lecture Series Begins Jan. 13, 2010

The annual “Delicate Balance of Nature” free weekly lecture series will begin its 19th season at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13 at the Visitor Center inside John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Mile Marker 102.5 ocean side.”The topics range from pythons and native Keys snakes, to birds of the Keys, from ethnobotany to the Overseas Heritage Trail history,” Park Manager Pat Wells said.

Park gates will reopen after hours at 7 p.m. and remain open as long as there are seats in the auditorium, which is wheelchair accessible. Seating is limited, so be on time; bring a seat cushion for added comfort. The program is sponsored by Dagny Johnson Key Largo Hammock Botanical State Park. For more information, call Elena Muratori at 305-451-1202.

Florida Keys Wild Bird Center Back on Track

By STEVE GIBBS Free Press Staff

KEY LARGO — A resurgent Florida Keys Wild Bird Center has hired a hospital coordinator to care for injured and sick birds and found a new location for its medical facility.

“It’s clear sailing from here,” said Bob Gintel, the new chairman of the center’s board of directors.

The turnaround comes just two months after the near closure of the facility due to funding shortfalls. But local media publicity, an infusion of donations and a reorganization of the board has kept the center afloat.

“People on the board stepped up to the plate and we are using the money we collected,” Gintel said. “There was an outpouring of money and we were able to pay off all of the vendors.”

The Ocean Reef Foundation and two other Ocean Reef Club members donated $22,000, an anonymous Islamorada resident donated $25,000 and Gintel himself ponied up $10,000 to get the non-profit rescue center back on an even keel.

In response to licensing and federal flood-plain concerns, the center has signed a one-year lease to use a vacant veterinary clinic at mile marker 94 as the center’s hospital and office. The new facility opened Monday.

However, the gift shop, wild bird educational exhibit and the daily 3:30 p.m. feeding will remain at mile marker 93.6, bayside.

Virginia Bowen, formerly of the now-defunct Folke Peterson Wildlife Center in Broward County, has been hired as the wildlife care manager. Vered Nosrad, past director of that same Broward facility, is the new director of the hospital.

“They bring a licence with them and they are highly regarded by the regulators,” Gintel said. “We’re not going to have all the flaunting of the laws as they did in the past.” [Interesting]

Hospital assistant Staci Dillis will continue to help with surgeries and rehabilitation.

sgibbs@keysnews.com

Pirate Black Caesar Returns to Key Largo

KEY LARGO, Florida Keys — According to history and legend, the pirate Black Caesar roved Florida’s coastal waters in the early 19th century. According to the organizers of the Key Largo Pirates Festival, set for October 23-25, the notorious pirate will make a comeback during the festival.

The festivities are to kick off Friday, Oct. 23, with a parade down U.S. Highway 1. The procession is expected to gather at 5:30 p.m. along Caribbean Drive, ending at the Holiday Inn Tiki Bar, mile marker (MM) 100 oceanside — not far from the place where Black Caesar is thought to have maintained a harem and buried treasure worth millions of dollars.

Float judging and a costume contest are to begin at the Tiki Bar at 7 p.m., along with a Pirate Bash on the Bay with live music. Tickets for the bash are $20 per person plus tax and gratuity.

Those eager to come face-to-face with the fearsome pirate — or at least his modern-day stand-in — are likely to do so Saturday, Oct. 24, from noon to 11 p.m. at MM 104 bayside. Caesar and his buccaneer brethren might be spotted haunting the Pirate Bazaar and Thieves’ Market, set to begin at noon at the Big Chill, Sundowners, Cactus Jacks & Señor Frijoles. Pirate paraphernalia, memorabilia and art are to be among the attractions for attendees.

Also Saturday, scallywags are to take to the high seas for underwater treasure hunts and an underwater poker tournament. Along with an above-water contest open to the public, the underwater action is part of a three-day Pirates’ Poker Challenge that coincides with the festival.

For nongambling types, a concert on the water on Blackwater Sound commences at 2 p.m. off Sundowners and the Big Chill bayside complex.

The pillaging and plundering is to intensify at 6 p.m. as pirates invade Key Largo in a professionally choreographed re-enactment of Black Caesar’s return — complete with artillery line, encampments, battles and skits on Blackwater Sound.

Like the concert, these can be viewed from Sundowners and the Big Chill. Grog, grooves and golden treasure are to abound as the bazaar continues well past the blasts of festive fireworks set for 9 p.m.

The action Sunday, Oct. 25, is to include Black Caesar’s By-Land-or-Sea Poker Run beginning at 11 a.m. at Sundowners, MM 104. Pirates are expected to hit ports of call such as the Bayside Grille, Snappers, Mandalay, Pilot House, Coconuts and Gilbert’s Resort.

Key Largo Pirates Festival organizers also plan to host The Good, The Bad & The Ugly costume contest at a location yet to be determined. Prizes await the sexiest and scariest pirates, best buccaneer and best wench. In addition, revelers can enter conveyances including bikes, cars and boats in a contest for best-decorated conveyance.

The pirate festival is to culminate in a Buccaneer Finale at the Caribbean Club, MM 104 bayside. Attendees can expect to find wild-eyed pirates jiving to live music and imbibing the island’s grub and grog before the climactic handing over of the loot.

For a complete parade route and more festival information, visit www.keylargopiratesfest.com or call Sue Finney at (305) 394-3736.

For information on area accommodations, call the Key Largo Chamber of Commerce at (800) 822-1088 or (305) 451-4747, or visit the official Florida Keys & Key West Web site at www.fla-keys.com

Biologists Free Key Largo Manatee Entangled in Fishing Line

July 31, 2009
Contact: Gabriella Ferraro, 772-215-9459

Biologists with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Fish and Wildlife Research Institute and the Dolphin Research Center rescued a female manatee today at Gilbert’s Marina in Key Largo.

Biologists captured the animal so they could remove monofilament fishing line that was embedded in the manatee’s right flipper. If left untreated, the entanglement could lead to the loss of the flipper.

A Miami Seaquarium veterinarian removed the line, treated the wound and deemed the animal healthy enough for immediate return to the wild.

Monofilament fishing line can cause serious injury or death for a variety of Florida wildlife. Florida’s Monofilament Recovery and Recycling Program is a statewide effort to educate the public about the problems caused by monofilament line left in the environment, to encourage recycling through a network of line-recycling bins and drop-off locations, and to conduct volunteer fishing line cleanup events. For more information, visit www.fishinglinerecycling.org.

To report a dead or distressed manatee, call the FWC’s Wildlife Alert hotline at 888-404-FWCC (3922).

For more information on manatee research, visit http://research.MyFWC.com/manatee.

Job Listing – Undersea Research Diver in Key Largo

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9 Inch Lionfish Captured on Key Largo Elbow Reef

Any doubt about the prevalence of lionfish in Florida Keys waters ended July 5. The largest lionfish yet captured in the Keys — 9 inches total length — was netted at The Elbow Reef off Key Largo. It was the eighth exotic lionfish taken in Keys waters since the first capture in January, an average of better than one a month.

“This was the largest Keys fish so far, and certainly reproductively capable,” said Lad Akins, special projects director at the Reef Environmental Education Foundation. “We’re getting lionfish sightings with more frequency,” said Karrie Carnes, information officer for the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

A response team formed by the sanctuary and REEF headed to The Elbow after the big lionfish was spotted around 11 a.m. July 5 by Quiescence Diving Services instructor Chelyn Shaw. Quiescence staff volunteered a boat and crew.

“At 3:30 p.m. the fish was located in exactly the same location as reported,” Akins said. “The fish was first noted resting upside down under a ledge, but during the removal dive it was found hovering over the sand bottom under the ledge, hunting.” It took divers just eight minutes to find and net the fish, the most efficient capture yet, Carnes said. Read more…

Key Largo Shipwreck Studied

About 18 feet underwater off Key Largo lies a mystery ship, one of hundreds in just these waters. It’s cargo, name and destination are unknown. All that remains of the wreck are planks of timber, iron rods and some pieces of coal.

State underwater archaeologist Roger Smith and his team will spend about two weeks mapping the site that has become a bountiful coral reef. In time they will also try to piece together what ship this was, its voyage and whether it should be nominated for the National Register of Historic Places. The work is part of an ongoing effort to take an inventory of Florida’s shipwrecks and artifacts, which number around 300 just off Key Largo alone.

Named the “Marker 39″ wreck for its location just two miles off the coast of Key Largo, the remains hold many clues that could help unlock its secrets. A buoy has marked the spot since 1863, which could help date the shipwreck because it could be when the ship ran aground that people realized the area was dangerous.

Since I don’t have a photo of this wreck I thought you might like to see what else you might see when diving wrecks in the Florida Keys. This photo is by Stig Nygaard. Read more…

Key West Cutter to be Freed – Update…Released May 12

UPDATE May 12, 2009 Cutter, A young Atlantic spotted dolphin that spent nearly three months recuperating at a Florida Keys marine mammal rehabilitation center has been released off Key West. Rescuers with the Marine Mammal Conservancy released the animal Tuesday after finding a pod of dolphins for him to join. Young rescued marine mammals are not normally released, because they need their mothers to learn survival skills. But Cutter, as the dolphin was nicknamed, is believed to be just under three years old. Experts believe he probably knows enough to live in the wild and could learn additional survival skills if accepted by the pod.

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Cutter will be closely monitored for the next two days to make sure he is accepted by the pod and able to find food.An Atlantic-spotted dolphin that was rescued in February in Key West Harbor is set to be released in mid-May, marine mammal experts say. Cutter is to be moved to Key West in the next few weeks so officials at the Marine Mammal Conservancy can search for a pod of Atlantic-spotted dolphins that is believed to still be in the area. MMC President Robert Lingenfelser said once the pod is located, Cutter will immediately be transported and released. The adolescent dolphin will be fitted with a VHF tracking tag and monitored to ensure its acceptance by the pod, Lingenfelser said. Normally young rescued marine mammals are not released because they need their mothers for nutrition and behavioral conditioning. But Cutter, estimated to be between 2 and 3 years old, is at a borderline age and experts feel he probably knows enough to live in the wild, but can learn additional needed survival skills if accepted by the pod. Thus was the reason MMC, along with the National Marine Fisheries Service and a panel of other experts, agreed to a conditional release. “This has never been tried before,” Lingenfelser said. “But Cutter is very healthy and we’ll be monitoring him very closely to ensure he is OK. If he doesn’t do well, we’ll be ready to rescue him again.” Some dolphin advocates were critical of MMC for removing Cutter from the water, saying the animal wasn’t in danger and didn’t need to be rescued. Lingenfelser disagrees. “If we had not rescued him, he would have died,” said Lingenfelser. “Medical tests proved he was starving and because of that, his liver was compromised and there were other issues.” The dolphin was named Cutter by U.S. Coast Guard personnel in Key West because of the proximity of its Feb. 14 rescue next to their station. The mammal has received round-the-clock care at MMC’s Key Largo rehabilitation facility.

Wayward Key Largo Sponges

Scientists have invented a better fixer-upper for damaged coral reefs. The method could aid local restoration efforts to rehabilitate these ecosystems in the aftermath of hurricanes or harmful human activities.
Often, after such events, large sponges are littered on the ground and die because they cannot grow back onto the reef. So far, various cements and glues have failed to provide a fix, and, as a result, restoration projects have focused on smaller organisms that are easier to patch.

Using a new technique involving a “sponge holder,” the team removed and then affixed 20 Caribbean giant barrel sponges at Conch Reef, near Key Largo, Florida. Almost two-thirds of the sewed-on specimens survived at least another two to three years, despite four hurricanes passing over the area during that time. Most by that time had naturally reattached to the reef, something that usually did not occur in previous surgical attempts. – Jessica Leber

Source: McMurray, S.E., et al. 2009. A Novel Technique for the Reattachment of Large Coral Reef Sponges. Restoration Ecology DOI: 10.1111/j.1526-100X.2008.00463.x