4-27-14

We had a successful day of harvesting invasive lionfish thanks to a dedicated team of conservation focused participants. Over 150 lionfish were removed from three different artificial reef sites offshore Jacksonville Florida. Two of the reefs visited were sunken vessels known as the Spike and the Powerful, and the third reef serviced was a concrete culvert site. Site depths ranged from 80 to 110 feet deep.

We had 7 divers participate; two underwater cameramen (Joe Kistel, Larry Davis), three lionfish hunters (Eric May, Elizabeth Kirilloff, and Matt), and two live capture harvesters (Ed Kalakauskis, Nathan Tucei). Together the team brought as many lionfish as they could within their safety limits. Unfortunately we were unable to capture all the lionfish at these reefs sites because of their abundance but we are hopeful the fish that were removed will directly benefit our marine environment in some capacity.

A big thanks to Capt Dan and the crew of Offshore Dive Charters. Captain Dan's offshore knowledge and offshore hospitality made this a possible effort.

Below are the news story broadcast that show the story of this effort.

Fox 30 story:

ABC/NBC story:

First Coast News: