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Lionfish Stomach Contents Reveal Massive Appetite

Yikes... not good. It seems like I see at least once Lionfish every time I go snorkeling in the Caribbean. They are everywhere.
 
supposedly they do taste pretty good. i think harvesting them is the problem right now, its not economical. i saw a company that sells lionfish filets on the shark tank once and i think i remember that being the problem
 

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
When I was in Aruba I asked for one, and they wanted to bring be the whole lionfish just fried. I declined and ordered something else as I would not even have known where to start with it. They supposedly are really good.
 

redfishbluefish

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I know this is bit of a hijack, but where is the poison on the Lionfish...is it only in the tips of its fins? I'm assuming it's not like that poisonous puffer that they eat in Japan that has to be prepared by a certified chef.
 

TanksNStuff

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
Wow, that's a lot of fish to be eaten in a relatively short period of time (considering there was no signs of digestion on any except for one.)

We need to start catching/eating those suckers a lot more than we do!
 
The lionfish are a HUGE problem in the waters of the Caribbean and up the coast of Florida and beyond. They have a voracious appetite filling their stomachs with more then you would think possible. They also reproduce extremely fast, like 10's of thousands every three to four days!! They have no known predators except humans in their non-native waters. The only way they can be caught (reasonably) is by divers with spears. They are decimating our reefs and need to be stopped, but they reproduce faster then we can kill them.

When I used to live in the Caribbean the local markets and restaurants would buy the fish from us after our day of diving. Only the spines have the toxin (not poison) in them. The toxin is protein based and a sting is treated with warm/hot water. The sting is extremely painful but will cause no harm if treated quickly but if not can cause serious injury. The meat is tender white meat with a very mild flavor, it is an wonderful fish to eat.

We are fighting a loosing battle. If you ever see lionfish available, please give it a try. By eating lionfish you are doing your part to save the reefs we love so much.
 
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