Upcoming Workshops
Lionfish, invasive exotic species: Management and Control
Mérida, Yucatán, Mexico, 11 October 2013 (as part of the 1st Pan-American Congress on coral reefs)
Time: 9:00 am to 14:00
The workshop is intended for coastal resources managers, NGOs, fisheries officials and academia from the Western Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean basins. During the session relevant lionfish isssues will be discussed as: Ecology and economy impacts and regional management and control strategies.
For more information visit: http://redoctober.sisal.unam.mx/1Cpac/Panamerican_Coral_Reef_Congress/Sesiones___Sessions.html
Past Workshops
Lionfish Control Strategy write-up workshop
San Juan, Puerto Rico, 3-6 September 2012
Key participants from all over the Caribbean met in Puerto Rico on 3-6 September to plan to write up of a Regional Lionfish Control Strategy. The workshop was organized by ICRI’s Regional Lionfish Committee (RLC). The Strategy is now under development and will be promoted in relevant international fora. More information.
Lionfish Best Practices Manual Writeshop
Miami, USA, April 2011
Expert group of drafters met to develop outline for the Lionfish Best Practices Manual with funding support from NOAA. Chapter authors were designated and began drafting content.
Regional Lionfish Workshop
Cancún, Mexico, 27-28 August 2010
This workshop, funded by the National Commission for Protected Areas (CONANP)-Mexico, the Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF), the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the government of France (as ICRI Secretariat) hosted 40 participants from 17 countries and territories, involved in the management of lionfish across the Caribbean region. The objectives of the workshop were to:
- Identify and refine ‘best practices’ for control of the invasive red lionfish (Pterois volitans) in the Caribbean.
- Create the foundation for a regional body to work collaboratively on lionfish issues in the Wider Caribbean.
- Increase regional awareness, communication, collaboration, and capacity to assess ecological impacts and control lionfish in the Wider Caribbean
- Achieve consensus among workshop participants on effective lionfish control strategies, action items, and future initiatives while simultaneously recognizing the unique challenges faced by each country represented at the workshop.
Sessions were organized under the following themes: education and outreach, control strategies, policies and regulations, partnerships, research priorities, and resource needs. Concluding discussions focused on the need for continued collaboration on lionfish issues and follow-up activities, including developing a best practice manual for distribution across the Caribbean; establishing a body of lionfish experts to serve as a regional task force; and establishing a central clearing house to share information on lionfish control strategies.
