Lionfish are in the waters surrounding the Island for good but their population can be controlled, according to Chris Flook of the Bermuda Aquarium.He said that measures intended to reduce the invasive fish’s local population have helped keep the species from overtaking the reefs, as they have in the Bahamas.“We will always have lionfish on our reefs, but unlike some areas, we will still have other species as well,” the head collector for the Aquarium told members of Hamilton Rotary Club. “This is one of these things that is going to be an issue forever.”Lionfish are native to the Pacific and Indian Oceans. Five fish were accidentally released into the Atlantic near Florida, in 1992.Since then, the fish have appeared throughout the Caribbean and as far north as Rhode Island. The species has no natural predators in the Atlantic, reproduces quickly and native fish do not recognise it as a threat.Mr Flook said the species now dominates reefs in the Bahamas.“In their natural environment in the Pacific, they find around 80 lionfish for every kilometre of reef. In the Bahamas, the figure is ten times that,” he said. “They are now the most dominant species in the Bahamas.“It’s quite staggering how quick they moved in there. It’s really scary. The fish here in the Atlantic just don’t see them as a threat.“When lionfish take a reef, 90 percent of the other fish are gone. Predators leave because there is no food and smaller fish get eaten. The only thing that really hunts them is us.”He showed the Rotary a slide of a female lionfish caught on the Island with more than a dozen reef fish in its stomach. The fish was also found to be suffering from liver disease caused by overeating.“You don’t get this in wild fish,” Mr Flook said.The first lionfish was spotted in Bermuda in 2000. Mr Flook said Government was quick to take action, launching a culling programme and encouraging fishermen to target the fish.And Government recently amended lobster trap regulations to allow lobster fishermen to sell any lionfish caught in the traps.Mr Flook said fisherman were reluctant to catch the animals because they were reputed to be poisonous.“I thought it was going to be hard to sell it to the restaurants and easy to convince the fisherman to catch it,” he said. “I mean, this is the one fish in the Atlantic where we can say catch as many as you want.“It’s turned out that the restaurants are all for it, but the fishermen are scared.”The venom is located only in its spines and is protein-based, meaning it is rendered harmless by freezing or cooking, Mr Flook explained.He said he had been stung several times with the pain similar to that of a bee sting.“It improves your reflexes and teaches you a few new swear words, but that’s it,” he said.“Around the world thousands of people have been stung, but nobody has died.“This is all about getting the education out there and getting the facts out.”