Bertuol, P.

de León, R.

Simal, F.

Vane, K.

Vermeij, M.

English

Aquatic Commons

 Proceedings of the 64th Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute     October 31 - November 5, 2011   Puerto Morelos, Mexico 
Overfishing Works: A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Lionfish Control  
Efforts between Bonaire and Curaçao 
 
La Sobrepesca Funciona: Una Comparación de la Eficacia de los Esfuerzos de  
Control del Pez León entre Bonaire y Curazao 
 
Le Surpêche Travaille: Une Comparaison de L'efficacité des Efforts de  
Contrôle des Poissons-papillons entre Bonaire et Curaçao 
 
RAMÓN DE LEÓN¹, KIM VANE2, MARK VERMEIJ², PAULO BERTUOL1, and FERNANDO SIMAL¹  
¹STINAPA Bonaire, Bonaire National Marine Park,  P.O. Box 368, Bonaire, Dutch Caribbean. ²CARMABI, Caribbean 
Research & Management of Biodiversity, P.O. Box 2090, Willemstad, Curacao. 
 
EXTENDED ABSTRACT 
The invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans/miles) has well-known negative effects on recruitment and abundance of native 
fish populations in the Caribbean (Albins 2012, Albins and Hixon 2008, Green et al. 2012, Johnston and Purkis 2011). 
Potential native predators seem to largely avoid consuming lionfish independently and so Caribbean lionfish populations 
increased 13 to 15 fold relative to those in its native range (Darling et al. 2011, Kulbicki et al. 2011, Mumby et al. 2011). 
Consequently, concerns exist about potential irreversible declines of Caribbean fish populations due to predation of the 
invasive lionfish. Control management strategies have been proposed and implemented Caribbean wide to reduce local 
lionfish populations. Though strategies vary between islands depending on local laws, lionfish reduction efforts generally 
rely on local recreational divers using some form of underwaterspear or –harpoon. Whether such control efforts of lionfish 
populations are effective is currently unknown, though expected to be successful under certain circumstances based on 
predictive modelling of various removal programs (Barbour et al. 2011, Morris et al. 2011).  
We quantified the effectiveness of lionfish control management on the nearby islands Bonaire and Curaçao (Southern 
Caribbean). The first official sighting of lionfish on both islands occurred in October 2009 and within 6 months it spread 
around the two islands. Active reduction efforts were immediately started on Bonaire by the marine park authority which 
trained > 300 local divers to use spearguns. While spearfishing is illegal on both islands, local authorities contracted local 
divers and provided them with small modified spearguns (‘ELF’s – Eradicate Lion Fish’) designed to kill only lionfish. On 
Curaçao, a similar program was implemented by the local government 19 months later (July 2011) than on Bonaire which 
resulted in 70 trained volunteers.   
To assess whether eradication efforts on Bonaire lead to a successful reduction of the local lionfish population, we 
compared the abundance of lionfish on Bonaire (fished) and Curaçao (unfished) between June and August 2011, i.e. just 
before official removal efforts began on Curaçao. Lionfish abundance (in g/m2) was estimated at 23 locations on Bonaire 
and 14 locations on Curaçao in 50 x 4 meter belt transects at 15, 25 and 35 meters depth on the leeward side of both islands. 
Results showed that after two years of active lionfish removal on Bonaire compared to an unfished Curaçao, lionfish 
biomass on Bonaire was on average 4.2 times lower than on Curaçao (Figure 1A). Secondly, lionfish weight and size on 
Curaçao were 33 and 15% higher than on Bonaire (Figure 1B+C). Therefore, effective control of invasive lionfish in areas 
that have an active diving community, is possible through involvement of this community in local management efforts.  
 
LITERATURE CITED 
Albins, M.A. 2012. Effects of invasive Pacific red lionfish Pterois volitans versus a native predator on Bahamian coral-reef fish communities. Biological 
Invasions. doi:10.1007/s10530-012-0266-1. 
Albins, M.A. and M.A. Hixon. 2008. Invasive Indo-Pacific lionfish Pterois volitans reduce recruitment of Atlantic coral-reef fishes. Marine Ecology 
Progress Series 367:233-238. 
Barbour, A.B., M.S. Allen, T.K.  Frazer, and K.D. Sherman. 2011. Evaluating the potential efficacy of invasive lionfish (Pterois volitans) removals. PLoS 
ONE 6(5):e19666. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0019666. 
Darling, E.S., S.J. Green, J.K. O’Leary, and I.M. Côté. 2011. Indo-Pacific lionfish are larger and more abundant on invaded reefs a comparison of Kenyan 
and Bahamian lionfish populations. Biological Invasions 13:2045-2051. 
Green, S.J., J.L. Akins, A. Maljković, and I.M. Côté. 2012. Invasive lionfish drive Atlantic coral reef fish declines. PLoS ONE 7(3):e32596. doi:10.1371/
journal.pone.0032596. 
Johnston, M.W. and S.J. Purkis. 2011. Spatial analysis of the invasion of lionfish in the Western Atlantic and Caribbean. Marine Pollution Bulletin 
62:1218-1226. 
Kulbicki, M., J. Beets, P. Chabanet, K. Cure et al. 2012. Distributions of Indo-Pacific lionfishes Pterois spp. in their native ranges: implications for the 
Atlantic invasions. Marine Ecology Progress Series 446:189-205. 
Mumby, P.J., Harborne, A.R., Brumbaugh, D.R. 2011. Grouper as natural biocontrol of invasive lionfish. PLoS ONE 6(6):e21510. doi:10.1371/
journal.pone.0021510. 
Morris, J.A., K.W. Shertzer, and J.A. Rice. 2011. A stage-based matrix population model of invasive lionfish with implications for control. Biological 
Invasions 13:7-12. 
Page 66  64th Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries Institute  
 
A) Lionfish abundance
0
0,5
1
1,5
2
2,5
Curaçao Bonaire
B
io
m
a
s
s
 (
g
/m
2
)
B) Lionfish weight
0
40
80
120
160
200
Curaçao Bonaire
W
e
ig
h
t 
(g
)
C) Lionfish size
0
5
10
15
20
25
Curaçao Bonaire
S
iz
e
 (
c
m
)
Figure 1. A) Average lionfish abundance in biomass (g/m2) at Curaçao and Bonaire in 2011, B) Average weight in grams of 
lionfish encountered on Curaçao and Bonaire in 2011, C) Estimated average size in centimeters of lionfish at Curaçao and 
Bonaire in 2011. Error bars represent standard error. 


Overfishing Works: A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Lionfish Control Efforts between Bonaire and Curaçao

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Overfishing Works: A Comparison of the Effectiveness of Lionfish Control Efforts between Bonaire and Curaçao

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