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- INVASIVE
We are excited to welcome the newest member of the REEF Team - Elizabeth Underwood, who joined our staff this month as Lionfish Program Coordinator. Elizabeth has been an active REEF member, avid fish counter, dedicated lionfish hunter, and all-round marine science enthusiast for quite some time. Elizabeth was first introduced to REEF in the Spring 2011 when she studied abroad in the Turks and Caicos Islands and conducted her first of many REEF fish surveys and lionfish studies.
Join Carol Cox in this informative webinar about the fish that you will see while diving in the Northern Gulf of Mexico, including changes that have taken place since the lionfish invasion and a new invasive species that has taken over the region. Tune in to find out more!
Your time zone may vary - this is a live, online session that starts at 8pm Eastern time.
Fishes covered in this session are:
It was a busy summer for REEF’s Explorers Education Program, between the Ocean Explorers Summer Camp and the “Nature Days” program with the Florida Keys Children’s Shelter. Throughout the summer, 80 children joined REEF to learn about marine conservation and environmental science in a fun, outdoor setting. Thank you to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, Coral Reef Park Company, Florida Keys Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center, Island Dolphin Care, and the Everglades Outpost who made these programs possible.
This holiday season, we are reflecting on the beginnings of REEF. Our mission to conserve marine environments began 25 years ago in the Florida Keys, when a small group of pioneering divers and conservationists took a slate on a dive and started REEF’s Volunteer Fish Survey Project, a program that would eventually become the largest marine life sightings database in the world. Since then, our work has grown to include endangered and invasive species work, as well as education and outreach. None of this would be possible without you, our members.
Since 2010, more than 45,000 invasive lionfish have been removed through REEF Lionfish Derbies. We are excited to announce that the following dates and locations have been set for REEF’s 2019 Summer Lionfish Derby Series:
• June 28 – 30: 8th Annual Fort Lauderdale Lionfish Derby at 15th Street Fisheries
• July 12 – 14: 6th Annual Sarasota Lionfish Derby at Mote Marine Laboratory and Aquarium
• Sept.13 – 15: 10th Annual Upper Keys Lionfish Derby and Festival at Postcard Inn Resort and Marina
This past month the Marine Conservation
Interns as a team successfully planned and
executed a Lionfish Jewelry Workshop.
Twenty members of the local community
attended this event to learn about invasive
lionfish and had the opportunity to create
earrings and necklaces out of their fins.
Attendees received all of the materials
necessary to create the jewelry, were
presented with a short demonstration and
then given creative freedom. The final
products were all original and beautiful! The
Calling all lionfish hunters! The 2021 REEF Lionfish Derby Series will kick off with the 8th Annual "Locals" Lionfish Derby on April 23-25 in Key Largo. This Earth Day Lionfish Derby will allow participants to practice social distancing while encouraging the removal of invasive lionfish from Florida Keys waters.
While we all knew it was just a matter of time, the call still came with a bit of surprise and dread as the first confirmed lionfish sighting in the Florida Keys came in on January 6th, 2009. REEF member Becky Fowler, from Greenville, SC, was diving just offshore of the Benwood Wreck in Key Largo when she spotted the invasive lionfish near the base of a ledge at 66'. With all of the recent focus and outreach efforts that REEF has been forwarding to our members, she knew immediately that she needed to document the sighting and gather a detailed description of its location.
Dear Valued REEF Members,