Lionfish, a brightly-colored, spiny fish that are not native to Florida, are taking over our reefs. How can we fight off this alien invasion? Floridians have come together to fight them off and save the reef. Lionfish, a brightly-colored, spiny fish that are not native...
Continue reading »
Diving, Environment, Exotic Invasives, Florida Keys
No Comment
What do you do with an invasive fish, covered from head to fin with venomous spines as sharp as hypodermic needles; a fish that can’t be caught with a rod or in a trawling net as it multiplies rapidly, deep in our oceans, flummoxing fishermen...
Continue reading »
Environment, Exotic Invasives
No Comment
Florida’s native fish and wildlife are facing a serious threat posed by a variety of invasive species found throughout the state. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) is taking steps to combat the introduction and spread of these non-native animals. Today, the Commission...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives
No Comment
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) invites Florida residents and visitors to take an active role in conservation by reporting fish and wildlife observations with the new FWC Reporter app. From fish kills to exotic species, to trapped or injured wildlife, FWC Reporter...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Keys Critters, Wildlife Mobsters
No Comment
Jackson Landers grew up in a vegetarian household. Now he hunts and butchers much of his own meat. In the past five years, he's focused on hunting and eating invasive species. In his book, Eating Aliens: One Man's Adventures Hunting Invasive Animal Species, the 35-year-old Landers chronicles...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Keys Critters
No Comment
Key Wester Charles “Chuck” Meier knows iguanas - Chicken of the Tree. He knows the details of hunting, cleaning, catching and cooking the invasive species. And, he says that Hurricane Irma didn’t help one bit with the population, saying it’s about to boom like never...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Keys Critters
No Comment
Successful is too small of a word to describe the second annual Lionfish Removal and Awareness Day Festival May 14-15. In Pensacola alone, 8,089 lionfish were removed in only two days at the Gulf Coast Lionfish Coalition Tournament. More than 7,000 people (more than double...
Continue reading »
Diving, Exotic Invasives, Fishing
No Comment
At its April 13 meeting in Jupiter, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) approved a two-part lionfish removal plan to further encourage removals of the invasive species in 2016. Lionfish have a potential negative impact on native wildlife and habitat and the FWC...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives
No Comment
The fight to control the invasive lionfish is about to get real if Ft. Pierce divers Bob and Maria Hickerson have anything to say about it. Hickerson and his wife — who run a series of highly successful lionfish derbies along Florida’s East Coast —...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives
No Comment
Filleting Lionfish
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Fishing, Keys Critters
No Comment
Python Challenge hunters planning to prowl the pinelands, mangroves and sloughs of Everglades National Park this winter should think again. Any pythons rounded up inside the national park's boundaries must be taken alive by a specially authorized "python removal agent," a National Park Service regional director...
Continue reading »
Everglades, Exotic Invasives
No Comment
A national environmental group has challenged the 2016 Python Challenge. From Jan. 16 through Feb. 14, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission will hold its second competition to remove pythons from public lands in South Florida; this year, hunting grounds have been expanded to...
Continue reading »
Everglades, Exotic Invasives
No Comment
KeysCaribbean Luxury Resort Villas & Marinas salutes four Florida Keys events in September and offers three compelling reasons to enjoy an end-of-summer escape to the Keys. “September in the Florida Keys is a great time to experience events that can only be found here.” said...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Fishing, Florida Keys, Resorts, Tourism
No Comment
Has Cuba impacted our environment? Here are three species that have made the leap. CUBAN BROWN ANOLES This little lizard has an aggressive streak. Swiftly, quietly, the brown anole has overrun Florida. Sometimes called the Cuban anoles, they have become the most abundant vertebrate on Florida...
Continue reading »
Cuba, Exotic Invasives
No Comment
The Burmese python may soon have a challenger for the top spot on the state’s invasive species list. Tegu lizards, which are known for their large stature and predatory habits, have been multiplying in population in South Florida ever since the first one was spotted...
Continue reading »
Everglades, Exotic Invasives
1 Comment
The device is called the Zoo-Keeper Lionfish Containment Unit, and word of mouth has turned it into a must-have Lionfish capture device for many recreational divers in the Caribbean and Florida. Sarasota entrepreneur Allie ElHage didn't know anything about the lionfish until late 2011. Four...
Continue reading »
Diving, Exotic Invasives, Fishing
No Comment
(Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto) Curt Clawson, R-Bonita Springs, has introduced a bill that would ban importing all 11 lionfish species, including the nine that have not been found in U.S. waters. The bill would not interfere with the selling of fish fillets, which encourages to help eliminate...
Continue reading »
Exotic Invasives, Fishing, Food
No Comment
