Article Summary:

Exotic Lionfish have been a problem in Florida and the Bahamas for some time, but today the New York Times reports that hundreds of Lionfish were observed by divers at Long Island this summer, as opposed to only a few over the last years:

“For us to be finding that many, there must be thousands and thousands more out there,” said Todd R. Gardner, a biologist at Atlantis Marine World aquarium in Riverhead. “It’s a population explosion.” Apart from the novelty of lionfish and the mystery of how they wound up so far from home, the sudden proliferation also raises questions about effects on the ecosystem, including potential threats to indigenous fish and hazards to swimmers.