The digital age has now allowed ordinary people to partake in watching nature and retain life's balance. One good instance is a phone app that helps track and collect lionfish from the shores of Florida.
ORLANDO Fla. (Reuters, Barbara Liston) - Florida has a new phone app to help cull the invasion of its waters by the spiked lionfish, a venomous species that is devouring other fish and harming reef ecosystems.
"The lionfish has no known natural predators in the Atlantic ... and the ability to spawn year-round," according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
With zebra-like stripes of red, brown and cream, they are native to the tropical waters of the Indian and Pacific oceans. Since their first sighting off Florida's Atlantic coast 25 years ago, the banded lionfish population has increased rapidly, according to the wildlife agency.
The Report Florida Lionfish app is designed to help the state collect data and raise awareness of the danger of invasive species, while encouraging people to report sightings so the fish can be removed from the state’s waterways, says Amanda Nalley of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
Those who have no smart devices can report lionfish at MyFWC.com/fishing. Officials warn the lionfish spikes can deliver a painful, though non-fatal, sting to humans.
State wildlife officials have also invited public participation in the fight against other invasive species. A state-sponsored Burmese python hunt in the Florida Everglades in January 2013 helped collect data, raise awareness and remove some of the giant snakes there.
Click here to download Report Florida Lionfish app for Android.
Click here to download Report Florida Lionfish app for iOS.
