How an Invasive Species Turned Into a Delicacy
/A new entree has recently expanded across many restaurant menus in the southeastern United States, hoping to aid management efforts and reduce environmental destruction caused by invasive lionfish in the Caribbean.
Invasive species are organisms not native to an ecosystem that causes harm to other species, habitats, or human health. Species are more likely to become invasive if they reproduce quickly, spread aggressively, and take advantage of new habitats. There are many examples of invasive species throughout history, and most are the unfortunate result of human expansion and global connectivity. Animals are often introduced purposefully or by accident from travel, shipping, and as a means of population control.
Introduced species outcompete native populations for vital resources and habitat, restructuring food webs that result in cascading ecosystem effects. The success of an invasive species in a foreign environment relies on the lack of natural predators in the new ecosystem, allowing that species to dominate the native organisms. Invasive species also contribute to diseases preventing successful reproduction and altering entire ecosystems.
There are invasive species worldwide, and many environmental scientists are working diligently to eradicate them out of native ecosystems, but doing so is a monumental task. Many invasive species are small, fast reproducing organisms that rapidly spread over large areas. Tactics used to mitigate their potential spread include using traps, reward incentives, and repurposing their use for consumption purposes. Trapping and reward incentives have proven useful solutions in island nations and small land areas, but larger invasions are harder to mitigate adequately. An interesting tactic for combating the invasive lionfish is developing a productive fishery for their commercial use as a product in restaurants and consumption.
Lionfish are reef fish native to the Indo-Pacific ocean characterized by colorful red and white striped bodies, featherlike fins, and venomous spines. The species is incredibly damaging to the Caribbean ecosystems because they are incredibly aggressive predatory fish that prey on anything they can catch. Without natural predators outside their native habitat, they have been able to dominate the top of the food chain quickly. Lionfish are a particularly popular aquarium fish with a large market in the United States.
The behavior of the lionfish in the Atlantic changed with their new habitat, and they act more aggressively than their counterparts in the Indo-Pacific. They are responsible for massive tolls on reef species like grouper and snapper. They can spawn every four days and release eggs that travel through the Caribbean currents. Atlantic populations are estimated to be up to 1,000 individuals per 1 acre at their highest densities, changing management goals.
Dealing with lionfish can be difficult due to venomous spines that require medical attention. Divers must use extreme caution to avoid stings and use protective gear and fishing poles to collect lionfish. Tactics for removal from local waters have resulted in some success. Rapid repopulation of the fish incited a new management avenue to convert the species into a fishery commodity for restaurants to market as a local delicacy.
Fishermen first realized you could eat the lionfish during culling events in south Florida, and they were delicious too. Modifying management efforts into a sustainable fishery means creating employment opportunities for small-scale fishermen, volunteer culling opportunities, fishing competitions, and a constant resource for consumer lionfish products. This method of invasive management is slowly gaining traction in the southeastern United States, and maybe one day, you will get to taste your very own lionfish.