The Hunt for Invasive Lionfish

Large scuba tanks on the divers’ backs didn’t weigh them down as they emerged from the ocean with clear containers holding striped maroon-and-white fish.

Plopping their catch onto a table lined with measurements in the center of the two-story dive boat, each one grabbed a fish by its mouth – being careful not to touch its venom-filled spines – and recorded its length.

Lionfish can easily depopulate coral reefs if left unchecked; the invasive species is not native to Atlantic waters and has no known predators. These carnivorous sea beasts of prey reproduce in mass amounts and devour everything in their sight, including small crustaceans and fish. According to the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a single lionfish residing on a coral reef can reduce recruitment of native fish by a decimating 79%.

In an effort to collect these predators and protect Miami’s delicate reef ecosystems, Salty Spines founder Alexa Krakowiak is organizing lionfish derbies this summer.

Sponsored by reef-safe sunscreen manufacturer Stream2Sea, Tarpoon Lagoon Dive Center, Deco Divers and CYM Media, the three-part summer event is continuing on July 17 and Aug. 14. Divers meet at the Miami Beach Marina at 300 Alton Rd. to hop on a dive boat, get paired into small teams, and dropped off at reefs and wreck treks 100 feet underwater to spear lionfish.

During last month’s derby, the first of the summer series, a total of 28 lionfish were captured. Cash awards of $250 were handed out to Greg Morgan, who caught the smallest lionfish at 6 inches, and Team WolfPod – Carly Bond, Cody Robinson, Robert Robinson and Daniel Small – who caught the largest lionfish at 16 inches.

The day’s other prizes were distributed through a raffle and included items such as coolers, a pole spear, a lionfish containment unit, a gift box from Wynwood Brewing Company and more.

Ultimately, everyone takes home a prize – the lionfish they caught. The fish may be a recipe for disaster in our waters, but they’re delicious when served fried, raw or as the base of ceviche.

Salty Spines also raised $1,000 for local nonprofit Castaways Against Cancer, whose volunteers kayak from Miami to Key West every summer to raise money for cancer research. Last month, Castaways held its 22nd annual mission on June 12, from Castaway Beach to Smathers Beach.

Krakowiak’s first organized derby was in 2019 and raised money for the Signature Wreck Project, an initiative of the Miami-Dade Reef Guard Association. At the time the pandemic hit, she had a lot of tail spines from lionfish she’d previously caught for a challenge with FWC Reef Rangers. She turned those into jewelry, which she sold in her Salty Spines shop.

The Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) member said she began to hunt lionfish as a hobby and it took off from there. As a native of Westport, Conn., she grew up on the water.

“I didn’t know that [lionfish] were an invasive species until I was doing my divemasters here in Miami,” she said. “I was on a dive and I was like, ‘Oh my god, that fish is so gorgeous,’ and then all of a sudden I see a spear come through and they start spine-ing it underwater.”

Krakowiak was horrified until she learned more about the invasive species impact on local waters, which experts believe date back to the 1980s, when people began dumping unwanted lionfish from their home aquariums into the Atlantic Ocean.

“As I started reading more into why they’re invasive and how much of an invader they are, I just slowly became obsessed with thinking about them,” she said.

Krakowiak now educates others on lionfish. One common misconception, she said, is that lionfish are viewed as poisonous. They do have up to 18 venomous spines but are safe to eat when the spines are properly sheared.

Small, a Miami-Dade Reef Guard Association board member, said that within two years he estimates the population of lionfish has been cut down by a quarter.

“Lionfish are completely invasive species and they eat everything. They eat fish, coral, plants,” he said. “What Alexa is doing is educating people how to basically eradicate these fish so that we can help control the population of what’s going on. And she’s done a pretty good job of it.”

Small’s WolfPod teammate Bond is a product manager for ZooKeeper, a company that manufactures lionfish containment units (LCU). She heard about the derby on social media and happily came down from Deerfield Beach with two other representatives from the company, Cody and Robert.

“We’re happy to participate where we can,” said Bond. “We’re a group of divers, so we have a huge passion for ocean protection and of course, now, hunting lionfish.”

ZooKeeper founder Allie ElHage essentially designed and built the first LCU in his garage. After bringing it along when he went hunting, it began to catch the attention of others.

“[It] makes it safer and easier to contain lionfish as you’re diving, [and works] something like a bag that you would use for a lobster, so to speak.” Bond said. “What’s nice is that you can spear the lionfish and then just stick it into the funnel, which helps to contain them so you’re not worried about the spikes. That way you can continue on your dive and move right on to the next.”

For the upcoming derbies, Krakowiak, who always endeavors to support ocean-centric organizations, said Salty Spines will donate toward coral restoration. In addition to Reef Guard’s Signature Wreck Project, proceeds from previous derbies have gone to Sharks4Kids.

“Lionfish are the most amazing creatures, but they’re also the perfect invaders,” said Krakowiak. “Unfortunately, they have to go.”