Lion Fish: Threat or Resource? - BNT Meeting - Wed. Jun. 25

Courtesy of SMITH + BENJAMIN's
Bahamian Art / Culture / Community Mailing Service
"uplifting the creative spirit of our community"

The 2008 Abaco Billfish Tournament

This year's Abaco Billfish Tournament will be held at the Abaco Beach Resort and Marina located in Marsh Harbour from June 10 - 13th. The format will be a "Catch and Release" tournament with separate divisions for Wahoo, Dolphin, and Tuna. Overall winning boat will be determined by the most billfish caught and released using our Point system.

Grand Prize - the ABC Treasure Chest - $50,000 in Gold! Crew Prize - Captain and two mates will receive a fully guided Black Bear hunt at the Homestead Lodge in Oxbow, Maine.

Visit ABC WebSite

29th Annual Bacardi Rum Billfish Tournament is underway!

By Port Lucaya Marina


The Port Lucaya Marina is pleased to be hosting the 29th Annual Bacardi Rum Billfish Tournament from March 9th to March 14th (no fishing on Wednesday). The tournament got underway, March 9th with a Bimini Start at 8am. Approximately 40 boats and 200 participants are involved in this year’s tournament.

Come down and view the exciting Daily Weigh-ins from 5:00 to 7:00pm at the centre dock at the Port Lucaya Marina.

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Fishermen Start Your Engines!

By KARAN MINNIS, Guardian Lifestyles Reporter, karan@nasguard.com


Lauren Cartwright, 34, a mother of two is excited that her family will soon be eating fresh Nassau Grouper, as the annual 75-day ban comes to an end on Wednesday, Feb. 28.

Since the second week of December, Cartwright and her daughters have been missing the "sweet taste" of the fish, which it was illegal to catch from Dec. 15, and they prefer to eat only freshly caught fish.

"We live on Long Island, and my husband is a fisherman, so when we eat fish it's usually caught by him and fresh. But since the grouper season closed, we have not had any grouper since," she said.

"I know it sounds strange but my youngest daughter Mia is very picky about what she eats, and the only fish that she really eats is the grouper. So she's super excited to be eating her favorite fish again," says Cartwright.

Mia, Ashley and their mother are in for a treat, because come tomorrow, her husband and other fishermen will be out to sea to collect the expensive meat.

The Nassau Grouper season closed from December 15 to February 28, in order to allow the Nassau Grouper to reproduce. As the ban has now been lifted, everyone, including the local chefs couldn't be happier.

"The majority of people love grouper because it takes seasoning so well," says Old Bahama Bay executive chef Basil Dean. "And its also the prefect fish to prepare because it's so versatile.

"But one thing to remember though is that it only takes about 40 minutes to cook. So you have make sure you check it while it cooks. Also note that grouper is usually clear when it's raw and opaque when done. And when it's done, you should be able to prick it with a fork and it will flake."

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*Baked Grouper with Chunky Tomato Sauce

Serves: 4

3 1/2 cups chopped seeded tomato (about 4 medium)

1/4 cup chopped green onions

1/4 cup dry white wine

1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

1 teaspoon capers

1 teaspoon bottled minced garlic

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons olive oil

4 (6-ounce) grouper fillets

Preheat oven to 425°.

Combine first 10 ingredients in a medium bowl.

Heat oil in a large heavy skillet over high heat. Place fish, skin sides up, in pan; cook 2 minutes. Turn fish over; top with tomato mixture. Bring to a boil. Place pan in oven; bake at 425° for 8 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Provided by Chef Basil Dean

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Grilled Grouper

Serves: 2

1 lb grouper fillet, cut into 1-inch chunks

1 sweet pepper

1 tomato

1 large onion

2 ounces lime luice

1/2 goat pepper

1/2 lb butter

1 table spoon garlic salt

Using foil paper doubled up; put all of the ingredients into foil and place on the grill for 12 minutes.

Provided by CoCo-Nuts Bahama Grill

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*Boiled fish

Serves: 4

2 lbs. grouper

salt and pepper to taste

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons hot sauce

Juice of 2 lemons, limes or sour oranges

2 onions, sliced

4 potatoes sliced

Place cleaned and washed fish in cooking pot and 3/4 cover with water. Add potatoes, salt, pepper, butter or margarine, hot sauce and lemon juice. Place onions on top of fish and cook over medium heat until fish is tender. Do not cook fish too long for it may fall apart.

Provided by Bahama Gateway.com

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*Abaco Baked Grouper

1 grouper fillet seasoned with pepper and lime

1 tomato, chopped

1 onion, minced

1 green pepper. chopped

1 tablespoons oil

Cook all but fish until tender. Place fillet in greased baking dish-cover with vegetables and place in foil. Bake at 350 degrees until fish is flaky.

Provided by Bahama Gateway.com

Derek Roderick Photography

At the age of 10, Derek bought his first 35mm camera, and spent the summer shooting black and white land photos, and developing the film in his bedroom closet.

14 years later Derek became a professional scuba diver, and got his first real taste for underwater imaging while shooting video on shark dives in Nassau.

Since then Derek has traveled, and worked as a diver extensively, throughout the Bahamas, Florida Keys, Mexico, Hawaii, Palau, Yap, and the Philippines.

With Camera in hand on over 3,000 dives, as well as taking land photography throughout his travels, Derek proudly displays a sample of his art for your enjoyment.

Visit the Derek Roderick WebSite

Asian Lion Fish Threatens Fishing Industry

DESCRIPTION
The lion-fish belongs to the Scorpion fish family.
This brightly coloured fish is usually found in coral reefs, especially in shallow waters hovering in caves or near crevices. Lion-fish have venomous fin spines that can produce painful puncture wounds.
Fatalities, however, are rare.

The fish have elongated dorsal fin spines and enlarged pectoral fins, and each species has a particular pattern of zebra like stripes.

A person punctured by one of the sharp spines will immediately feel strong pain. Rapid swelling of the affected body area develops along with the possibility of making movement of limbs very difficult. Lion-fish stings can cause nausea, breathing difficulties, paralysis, convulsions and collapse. Even death may occur in exceptional circumstances. Most people survive in spite of the great pain. The venom in the spines remains active for days, so even discarded spines should be treated with caution. It may take several months for a full recovery and if the sting is left untreated, gangrene may develop.

FIRST AID
At first immerse the affected area (most often a hand or foot) into hot water. This is thought to improve the blood flow and disperse the venom. Local anesthetic agents may provide deep relief in most cases and occasionally a nerve-block may be required. An X-ray of the wound should be performed to detect any presence of broken spines, so any possible infection can be prevented.

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By SAM SMITH, Guardian Staff Reporter

samsmith@nasguard.com

Captain Bruce Purdy watched a teenage passenger collapse on the deck of his boat when she brushed the venomous spines of a skewered, dead lionfish. He's heard of recreational divers on Exuma being airlifted to Nassau after exposure to their prickly, poison-filled spines.

Though victims of lionfish stings have said the burning sensation can be so intense that they feel like dying, the venom isn't known to be fatal. What's really troubling Purdy and fellow researchers is the effect that the invasive species could have on the fragile ecologies of Caribbean reefs and the commercial fishing industry.

Lionfish have been found along the Eastern United States for at least a decade. Some research puts the first Florida sighting in the mid-80s. But the research group REEF, of which Purdy's company Blackbeard Cruises is a member, hadn't spotted the versatile predators, with no known enemies in Bahamian waters, until three years ago.

Since 2004, REEF (an acronym for reef environment education foundation) has witnessed a 500-fold explosion in the local lionfish population, and there's no telling how much damage the voracious predators might do.

Though researchers differ on the extent to which lionfish will affect the overall commercial fishing and diving operations in The Bahamas, Purdy wants to sound alarms now, before things have a chance to get any worse.

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Bahamas Reef Dwellers

See the different types of marine life in our Bahama Waters.