Lionfish Pterois volitans and P. miles have spread rapidly throughout the Caribbean Sea since 1985, where they negatively impact native fish communities and therefore are considered by some as the most damaging invasive species in the Caribbean to date. To combat further population growth and spread of lionfish and to protect native fish communities, various Caribbean islands have started control efforts. On Bonaire, a removal program based on volunteers using spear guns was started immediately after the first lionfish was sighted in 2009, and a similar program was started on neighboring Curaçao 2 yr later. To determine the effectiveness of these removal efforts, differences in the density and biomass of lionfish were compared between areas in which lionfish were directly targeted during removal efforts (i.e. 'fished' areas) on Bonaire and areas where they were not (i.e. 'unfished areas') on both Bonaire and Curaçao. Lionfish biomass in fished locations on Bonaire was 2.76-fold lower than in unfished areas on the same island and 4.14-fold lower than on unfished Curaçao. While removal efforts are effective at reducing the local number of lionfish, recruitment from unfished locations, such as those too deep for recreational diving and at dive sites that are difficult to access, will continuously offset the effects of removal efforts. Nevertheless, our results show that the immediate start and subsequent continuation of local removal efforts using volunteers is successful at significantly reducing the local density and biomass of invasive lionfish on small Caribbean islands. KEY WORDS: Spearfishing · Eradication of lionfish · Pterois volitans · Invasive species · Curaçao · BonaireResale or republication not permitted without written consent of the publisher Endang Species Res 22: 175-182, 2013 time, and as a result, local and rapid response efforts are often not sufficiently considered as a (temporary) alternative to international action to minimize the effect of marine invasives, despite the fact that such rapid response strategies are sometimes successful (Anderson 2005, Frazer et al. 2012.All aforementioned aspects are relevant to management efforts aimed at minimizing the negative effects of the invasive Pacific lionfish Pterois volitans and P. miles on native marine communities in the Atlantic Ocean. P. volitans/miles were first sighted in the Atlantic region near the southeast coast of North America in 1985, where they had likely been released by aquarists (Semmens et al. 2004). From there, they first spread northward along the east coast of the USA and since 2004 also southward toward the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico and the north coast of South America (Schofield 2009, 2010, Johnston & Purkis 2011, Frazer et al. 2012). In the Caribbean, lionfish have established themselves in a variety of marine habitats, including coral reefs, mangroves, sea grass beds, coastal estuaries and deep waters up to 300 m (Barbour et al. 2010, Biggs & Olden 2011, Jud et al. 2011. They are generalist predators of...

The reproductive biology of Scyllarides deceptor was studied along the southern Brazilian coast (278S 488W) from December 2002 to December 2003. Samples were collected monthly at Xavier Island, where animals were caught and marked. Fecundity and egg size were estimated from ovigerous females caught also in two adjacent islands, Arvoredo and Aranhas. A total of 98 females was recorded at Xavier Island during the sampling period, 24 of these were recaptured and presented time-at-liberty ranging from 14 to 297 days. Ovigerous females were observed during spring and summer, with the moulting period lasting from late winter to spring. Size at sexual maturity was assessed from 66 females caught during the breeding season and estimated in 85.33 mm of carapace length (CL). Mean fecundity of S. deceptor was estimated in 191,262 eggs (+17,811, SE) for females, on average, 94.74 mm long (+1.86 mm SE) (CL). Fecundity was significantly related to CL (R 2 ¼ 0.90) Mean egg size was 0.67 mm (+0.005 mm SE) and did not correlate significantly to CL (P ¼ 0.78). The rocky bottom of Xavier Island was favourable for reproduction, presenting shelter and foraging grounds for the ovigerous females. For management purposes, our results suggest the closure of the S. deceptor fishery from November to January and the capture-size of females to be restricted to animals larger than 90 mm (CL).

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BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.