Artist, Scientist, Author, Conservationist, Angler & Diver; Guy Harvey will be signing autographs at the Islander Resort Thursday, Sept. 18th from 10 am to 12 noon. Come join Guy at the Islander …
Killing for Conservation!
23 Jul 201412:04 AM
Killing for Conservation?
Lionfish are incredibly fertile and have no natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean. Reef Environmental Education Foundation (REEF) has been leading the fight against this Indo-Pacific invader and after six years of Lionfish Derbies at Green Turtle Cay the evidence is clear: Lionfish Derbies Work! Lionfish now range from Brazil to North Carolina and beyond. They can live in fresh water too! The 908 Lionfish killed in this one day event was fewer than in previous years even with more divers and better weather. AND those fish that were killed this year were smaller than in previous years; another good sign. Lionfish Derbies will not send the fish back to the Pacific; they can however help local communities keep the population in check.
The Green Turtle Club, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge hosted the event. For six years, REEF scientists have conducted a Lionfish Census before and after each event to assess the impacts of the Derbies. REEF estimates that had these 908 demons been allowed to roam Abaco waters for another year they would have consumed between 700,000 and 2.2 MILLION! Native prey fish.
Congratulations and Thanks to REEF & to The Green Turtle Club for executing a great event for an important conservation mission!
For more information on Reef Environmental Education Foundation and other Lionfish Derbies.
For More information on The Green Turtle Club
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![](mailto:?subject=Killing for Conservation!&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/green-turtle-lionfish-haul-2014.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2068" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/green-turtle-lionfish-haul-2014.jpg?w=225" alt="Lionfish Derbies Work, 908 Dead Lionfish Cannot All Be Wrong!" width="225" height="300" /></a> Killing for Conservation?Lionfish are incredibly fertile and have no natural predators in the Atlantic Ocean. <a href="http://www.reef.org/">Reef Environmental Education Foundation</a> (REEF) has been leading the fight against this Indo-Pacific invader and after six years of Lionfish Derbies at Green Turtle Cay the evidence is clear: Lionfish Derbies Work! Lionfish now range from Brazil to North Carolina and beyond. They can live in fresh water too! The 908 Lionfish killed in this one day event was fewer than in previous years even with more divers and better weather. AND those fish that were killed this year were smaller than in previous years; another good sign. Lionfish Derbies will not send the fish back to the Pacific; they can however help local communities keep the population in check.<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/credit-ellie-splain.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2071" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/credit-ellie-splain.jpg?w=300" alt="Three Contestants for the Smallest Lionfish Caught. Photo Credit: Ellie Splain" width="300" height="200" /></a>Three Contestants for the Smallest Lionfish Caught. Photo Credit: Ellie Splain Click Image to Enlarge<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club</a>, a <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/index.php">Guy Harvey Outpost</a> Expedition Lodge hosted the event. For six years, REEF scientists have conducted a Lionfish Census before and after each event to assess the impacts of the Derbies. REEF estimates that had these 908 demons been allowed to roam Abaco waters for another year they would have consumed between 700,000 and 2.2 MILLION! Native prey fish.Congratulations and Thanks to REEF & to The Green Turtle Club for executing a great event for an important conservation mission!For more information on <a href="http://www.reef.org/">Reef Environmental Education Foundation</a> and other <a href="http://www.REEF.org/lionfish">Lionfish Derbies</a>.For More information on <a title="The Green Turtle Club" href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club</a>For More information on <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/index.php">Guy Harvey Outpost</a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/killing-for-conservation/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Join Guy Harvey at the Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost, In Person for a Signing Event Sept 18th&body=Artist, Scientist, Author, Conservationist, Angler & Diver; Guy Harvey will be signing autographs at the <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl/islamorada-fl-overview.html">Islander Resort</a> Thursday, Sept. 18th from 10 am to 12 noon. Come join Guy at the Islander Resort, his latest signature hotel and get your autograph or a quick selfie.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/gh-signing-at-islander.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-full wp-image-2233" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/gh-signing-at-islander.jpg" alt="GH Signing at Islander" width="550" height="711" /></a>
If you need to pick up the latest <a href="http://www.guyharveysportswear.com/">Guy Harvey Sportswear</a> the Islander's Outfitter Shop has a nice selection of Guy's latest designs.
More information on Guy Harvey Outpost & our other great resorts: <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a>
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![](mailto:?subject=Billfish Invitational $300 Fuel Credit From Bahama Out Island Promotion Board&body=Register now for the <a title="TBF web site" href="http://www.billfishinvitational.com" target="_blank">Billfish Invitational</a> fishing tournament at the <a title="BBGC web site" href="http://www.biminibiggameclub.com" target="_blank">Bimini Big Game Club</a> and you'll receive a $300 fuel credit from the Bahamas Out Island Promotions Board! The offer is available to any registered boat participating in the Billfish Invitational, and the $300 fuel credit will be applied to the folio of the registered boat at the time of the tournament. The fuel credit offer is limited to one fuel credit ($300) per registered boat. For more information, call 800.867.4764.
<a href="http://www.billfishinvitational.com/"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-1234" title="Register Now for the Billfish Invitational!" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/reels.jpg" alt="" width="550" height="412" /></a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/billfish-invitational-300-fuel-credit-from-bahama-out-island-promotion-board/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Diving Thrills with Huge Fish at Guy Harvey Outpost in Mexico&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/makodredge1-2.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-2914 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/makodredge1-2.jpg?w=300" alt="makodredge1 (2)" width="300" height="177" /></a>
It looks just like a giant, wide-open front-end loader plowing the surface of the Caribbean Sea, except it's ALIVE. A 15-foot long whale shark -- one of hundreds that gather annually from June through mid-September in the waters around Isla Mujeres, Mexico--is sucking up its dinner of plankton as a horde of enthralled snorkelers hovers nearby to watch. The calm, placid giant-- broad and brown with white dots-- pays them no mind and cruises slowly along, feeding on the spawn of bonitos with its huge dorsal fin sticking up out of the water. A few feet away, a six-foot- wide manta ray joins the buffet line, and the snorkelers' heads swivel wildly back and forth.
The waters around this small island just off Mexico's northern Yucatan peninsula are one of very few places in the world where just about anyone can get close-up and personal with the largest fish in the ocean in its natural environment. And captain Anthony Mendillo of Keen M Blue Water Charters is your best choice for tour guide.
One of the region's pioneering whale shark tour operators, Mendillo zealously protects these charismatic creatures and delights in introducing them to visitors.
"The whale shark dive is so cool because the whole family can enjoy it," he said. "Children can go. You don't have to be a professional diver or a professional naturalist to appreciate the magnitude of the experience."
Indeed, the Mexican government prohibits scuba diving with the whale shark aggregation; only mask, snorkel and fins are allowed. Visitors are not permitted to touch the animals or use flash photography.
Although the 2015 whale shark season has wound down, Isla Mujeres and Keen M offer other unique topwater and underwater opportunities: snorkeling with sailfish and cage-diving with mako sharks.
From January through early March, Keen M boats escort their customers to the catch-and release of up to 50 sailfish per day on rod-and-reel by homing in on seabirds diving on schools of sardines that form tight bait balls. After everyone's arms are worn out from reeling in sails and letting them go, it's time to jump in and check out the spindlebeaks' living room.
"I have people who catch a double and now they're down there in their underwear ready to jump in," Mendillo said. "It's a very happy medium when a guest can say, 'I saw a sailfish eat a sardine; now I know how to hook them.'"
The occasional wahoo has been known to join the sails in crashing the bait balls, adding to the excitement.
For the extremely adventurous, Keen M offers cage-diving with mako sharks that cruise the region in March and April. If you go, you just may spot a mako sporting hardware on its dorsal fin. That's because Guy Harvey and colleagues from Nova Southeastern University Oceanographic Center have implanted several with tags to track their movements.
Your headquarters for diving and fishing in Isla Mujeres is the Hotel Playa Media Luna, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge. There are plenty of openings for 2016.
*****
Sue Cocking chronicles the Guy Harvey Outpost travel and adventure experience in regular blog posts on GuyHarveyOutpostNews.com/. For 21 years, Cocking covered the full spectrum of outdoors adventure opportunities in South Florida and beyond for the Miami Herald, including fishing, diving, hunting, paddling, camping, sailing and powerboat racing. She is a certified scuba diver and holder of an IGFA women's world fly fishing record for a 29-pound permit. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/diving-thrills-with-huge-fish-at-guy-harvey-outpost-in-mexico/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Extreme Kayak Fishing’s Summer Slam Results in a Heavy-Weight Bout&body= Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournament's "Summer Slam" produced some terrific fishing for its 108 kayak anglers. Even with a 6am launch there was a party like atmosphere with rock 'n' roll piped through the PA system. When "Sailfish On!" came over the VHF 45 minutes later the trash talk evaporated. Joe Kraatz got on the board 30 minutes later releasing a nice sailfish.<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/sail-2.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2182 " src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/sail-2.jpg?w=660" alt="Joe Kraatz's Sailfish. Photo credit: Jorge Bustamonte" width="660" height="440" /></a>With the ice broken, the bite was on. For the next two hours the pick up boats had their work cut out for them picking up kingfish to be iced down. Things quieted down for a bit as lines out started to loom on the western horizon. "Massive Wahoo... I could see stripes.." came from John Moody's VHF. Those near by report they did not need a radio to hear Moody's excitement." With anticipation still high, the word "Cobia" spread over the air-waves. John SIms would be the first angler to land a cobia during any <a href="http://www.extremekayakfishingtournament.org/">Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournament </a>if he could boat the beast. Sims triumphant fight and paddle to shore for the 2pm weigh in took a toll on the angler as he needed help getting the Cobia to the scales.<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/dsc02100-21-copy.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2188 size-large" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/dsc02100-21-copy.jpg?w=660" alt="Top Five Winners. Photo Courtesy of Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournaments" width="660" height="411" /></a>Top Five Winners. Photo Courtesy of Extreme Kayak Fishing Tournaments First Place: Jack Daughtry of Maryland, two Kingfish, 51.7 poundsSecond Place: Joe Kraatz, two Kingfish, 47.8 poundsThird Place: John Sims, Cobia, 46.3 poundsFourth Place: Carl Torrensson, two Kingfish, 44.4 poundsFifth Place: Justin Moody, Wahoo, 36.7 poundsKingfish Calcutta Winner: Jon Cunningham, 32.4 poundsTop Junior Angler: Hunter Irvine, Kingfish, 11.9 poundsTop Billfish Angler: Joe Kraatz, SailfishWreck the Weight: Rob Rodriguez, AmberjackTrash Can Slam: John McKroid, Barracuda, 25 poundsTop Pelagic Angler: Justin Moody, Wahoo. Necklace courtesy of <a href="http://www.guyharveyjewelry.com/">Guy Harvey Jewelry</a>For more information on Guy Harvey Outpost and our 10 great resorts check out our website at <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a> https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/extreme-kayak-fishings-summer-slam-results-in-a-heavy-weight-bout/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Gather Ye Lobsters While Ye May&body=<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/lobster.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-3967 alignleft" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/lobster-225x300.jpg" alt="lobster" width="225" height="300" /></a>By Sue Cocking, Guy Harvey Outpost staff writer
scocking@guyharveyoutpost.com
Lobster hunters have two more weeks to bag a limit of tasty entrees before Florida's harvest season closes on April 1. Whatever you catch will have to tide you over until the annual two-day lobster mini-season July 27-28.
Here are some tips from three South Florida lobster diving experts for getting your limit of six per person per day:
KEYS
Go shallow, advises Eric Billips, owner of Islamorada Dive Center and author of textbooks on underwater hunting.
"You'll be way better off in eight to 15 feet of water just inside the reef," Billips said. "Look for a solitary coral head in a sandy area. Where you see one [lobster], there's a chance there will be two or three in the same head."
Billips and his companions recently caught four large lobsters near Hens n' Chickens Reef-- including a four-pounder. His preferred method is to use a net and tickler stick instead of a snare or 'bugger'.
"Be super chill, not real aggressive, tap-tap-tap real gently behind them," he advised.
It's illegal to spear lobsters in Florida, but it's perfectly okay to add to your haul by spearing some exotic lionfish, which frequent the same habitats as the crustaceans.
MIAMI BEACH/BISCAYNE BAY
Like Billips, Miami Beach captain Abie Raymond is finding plenty of super-sized bugs on isolated coral heads in the shallow waters from South Beach to Haulover Inlet. If you don't know where these coral heads are, Raymond said, follow the fish.
"If you see blue tangs, chase them and they will 99 percent of the time lead you to a coral head you didn't know was there," he said.
Biscayne Bay, the captain said, has not been as productive as usual due to this winter's unseasonable record rainfall.
Raymond, a free diver, uses a tickle stick and his bare hands to catch dinner.
"I tickle-stick them out and wiggle my fingers on my left hand and the lobster will put out his antennas," Raymond explained. "Then I put my [right] hand on the back of his tail."
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Slate-Special.jpg"><img class="aligncenter wp-image-3968 size-full" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Slate-Special.jpg" alt="Slate Special" width="724" height="351" /></a>
GREATER FORT LAUDERDALE
Few scuba divers are as successful at harvesting lobster in Broward County's urban waters than Jim "Chiefy" Mathie of Deerfield Beach and his regular dive crew. The author of the popular how-to manual "Catching the Bug" says the late-season hunter's best bet is to hit the east side of the third reef 75 to 85 feet deep, weather permitting.
"I can almost guarantee they'll be out there," Mathie said. "It's been bumpy. The visibility hasn't been the best due to rain and wind. The weather has kept people in. We've had an outstanding year. Almost every time we went out, we got our limit or almost our limit."
Mathie prefers the snare over the net and tickler stick.
"It's hard to get them out of the net," he said. "I use my snare like a tickler stick, withdrawing the loop and tickling them out. As soon as you've got that loop around the tail, you've got 'em."
NOT SO FAST...
Before you hit the hunting grounds, make sure you have a valid Florida saltwater fishing license and a lobster permit. To be legal, a lobster must measure greater than three inches on the carapace or head, and you must use a lobster gauge to measure it in the water. Taking egg-bearing females is prohibited. You must display a red-and-white diver-down flag whether you are diving from a boat or from shore. For a complete list of lobster regulations, visit the <a href="http://myfwc.com/fishing/saltwater/recreational/lobster/." target="_blank">MyFWC</a> web site.
****************
Sue Cocking chronicles the Guy Harvey Outpost travel and adventure experience in regular blog posts on GuyHarveyOutpostNews.com/. For 21 years, Cocking covered the full spectrum of outdoors adventure opportunities in South Florida and beyond for the Miami Herald, including fishing, diving, hunting, paddling camping, sailing and powerboat racing. She is a certified scuba diver and holder of an IGFA women's world fly fishing record for a 29-pound permit.
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Share your photos, videos and experiences with Guy Harvey Outpost by hash tagging #OutpostAttitude to all of your social media posts. https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/gather-ye-lobsters-while-ye-may/){kind=link}
![](mailto:?subject=Connected Warriors Gets Guy Harvey Outpost Support&body=Dear Christian,
Thank you for your kind words. We at Guy Harvey Outpost are moved by your letter and want you to know we are giving back. Nothing like the sacrifice you and your family have made. We will keep giving back. It is not always easy to find the right vehicle through which to help a cause. We have chosen Connected Warriors as ours.
Guy Harvey Outpost properties donated trips, art, fishing tackle and other prizes to <a href="http://connectedwarriors.org/">Connected Warriors </a>for their Annual Fundraiser this week. We want to honor all of our Veterans and their families who give so much. Connected Warriors provides Veterans and their families with free yoga classes. Ongoing studies indicate that regular yoga practice is more effective in the long term treatment of anxiety, depression and PTSD than conventional treatments.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/cw-logo-expanded.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-2319" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/cw-logo-expanded.jpg?w=300" alt="cw logo expanded" width="300" height="258" /></a>
Christian, thank you for your inspiration and for your enthusiasm for our efforts.
We all look forward to your next visit.
Take good care of yourself,
Your friends at Guy Harvey Outpost
PS. In addition to Guy Harvey Outpost's trip donations, support for Connected Warriors our staff reached out to the broader Guy Harvey Outpost Family. A special thanks to all those who jumped in with generous donations for Connected Warriors. Among those who answered the call when we asked for contributions for our Veterans were:
<a href="http://http://www.guyharvey.com/index.html">Guy Harvey </a>
<a href="http://www.titosvodka.com/">Tito's Handmade Vodka</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl.html">The Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/green-turtle-cay-abacos/overview.html">The Green Turtle Club, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge</a>
<a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/bahamas/bimini-bahamas.html">The Bimini Sands Resort & Marina, a Guy Harvey Outpost Expedition Lodge</a>
<a href="http://lmrtackle.com/andy-moyes-skirted-lures.aspx">Moyes Big Game Tactical Fishing Lures</a>
<a href="http://lmrtackle.com/">LMR Custom Tackle</a>
<a href="http://tropicalfitnessadventures.com">Yoga Ned</a>
More Information on Guy Harvey Outpost: <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/" target="_parent">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a>
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![](mailto:?subject=Explore Man’s Relationship with the Sea at the History of Diving Museum, Islamorada, April 15th&body=Immerse Yourself, Man’s Relationship with the Sea at the <a href="http://www.divingmuseum.org/">History of Diving Museum</a>, April 15th 7pm. Alyssa Engiles presents the story of Man, Homo Delphinus to the Aquatic Ape Hypothesis.
<a href="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/alyssa-engiles-history-of-diving-museum-friend.jpg"><img class="wp-image-2681 size-large" src="https://guyharveyoutpostblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/alyssa-engiles-history-of-diving-museum-friend.jpg?w=550" alt="Alyssa Engiles, History of Diving Museum & Friend" width="550" height="550" /></a>Alyssa Engiles, History of Diving Museum and Friend.
Come early to meet David Charash and learn about the underwater adventure of <a title="Cousteau Dives the Keys!" href="http://guyharveyoutpostnews.com/2014/06/11/cousteau-dives-the-keys/">Mission 31 </a>when Fabian Cousteau broke his grandfather’s endurance record.
The History of Diving Museum is located at: 82990 Overseas Hwy about one mile north of the <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/destinations/florida/islamorada-fl/islamorada-fl-overview.html">Islander Resort, a Guy Harvey Outpost</a>.
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For more information on the <a href="http://www.divingmuseum.org/">History of Diving Museum</a>
For Fishing with Guy Harvey Outpost: <a href="http://www.ghofish.com/">www.ghofish.com</a>
For Guy Harvey Outpost & their great resorts: <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/" target="_parent">http://www.guyharveyoutpost.com/</a>
For the Guy Harvey Outpost Blog <a href="http://www.guyharveyoutpostnews.com/" target="_parent">www.guyharveyoutpostnews.com</a>
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