Thousands of invasive lionfish pulled from the Gulf by local divers are headed not only to restaurants around the area, but also to classrooms across the country.

• The Guy Harvey Foundation picked up thousands of whole lionfish Thursday from Dewey Destin’s Seafood Restaurant in a new partnership with Destin-Fort Walton Beach that will put the invasive fish in the hands of more than 200 teachers nationwide for hands-on dissection lessons.

The fish were harvested by divers participating in the Emerald Coast Open pre-tournament, which runs from Feb. 1 through May 14. Divers who participate in the pre-tournament go out and harvest as many lionfish as they can, donate them to the event and receive raffle tickets. Once lionfish are turned in, they are sorted — larger lionfish are filleted at Dewey Destin’s and used during the Emerald Coast Open Restaurant Week, while the smaller fish have historically been frozen and set aside for opportunistic use in local classrooms or research.

This year, those smaller fish found a greater purpose.

“Instead of getting freezer burned or going into the dumpster or, they’re being frozen and repurposed for marine education,” said Alex Fogg, Natural Resources Chief with Destin-Fort Walton Beach.

The Guy Harvey Foundation, which has partnered with Destin-Fort Walton Beach’s Natural Resources and destination stewardship teams on various projects over the years, reached out to partners at Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Florida Marine Science Educators Association roughly three or four months ago about the initiative. These partners then connected with the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Natural Resources team in a full circle moment.  

The foundation said it had more than 200 teachers interested in receiving lionfish to incorporate into their curriculum, with each teacher receiving a five-pound block of fish — roughly 1,000 pounds total.

Fogg said he told the foundation’s team they would need to bring a large vehicle to handle the volume.

• “The Guy Harvey Foundation team showed up with three very large coolers. We filled those up this morning directly out of the freezer at Dewey Destin’s, and they brought them back up to Atlanta where they will be shipped out to all the teachers that are part of this program,” Fogg said.

The shipping costs are being covered by Zookeeper, a company that manufactures lionfish containment units used by divers. Zookeeper provided funding to the Guy Harvey Foundation specifically to pay for distributing the fish to teachers. The Guy Harvey Foundation is also a first-time sponsor of the Emerald Coast Open this year.

Fogg said the foundation plans to return for the main Emerald Coast Open event, scheduled for May 15-16 with an awards ceremony on May 17, to pick up hundreds if not thousands of pounds more lionfish for continued distribution.

The partnership is the latest extension of a lionfish program that has grown well beyond its origins. Fogg said when he joined Destin-Fort Walton Beach around 2017, invasive lionfish management was one of his primary responsibilities. Lionfish first appeared in the Gulf around 2010, and populations increased steadily in the years that followed.

• “We understand that we can’t get rid of lionfish, but we can certainly help our local ecosystems and encourage locals and visitors to harvest these invaders,” Fogg said. “By hosting these tournaments, especially at the beginning of the season, it gives our reefs a break on a local level.”

What started as small removal tournaments has since expanded into partnerships not only with the Guy Harvey Foundation, but also dozens of local organizations, along with restaurants willing to serve lionfish and educate their customers about its environmental impact.

The Emerald Coast Open Restaurant Week, which just began, runs May 10-16, features local restaurants putting their own spin on lionfish dishes while raising awareness about the invasive species. Participating restaurants include Crab Trap Destin, Sura Korean Steakhouse, La Paz, Brotula’s Seafood House & Steamer, Primrose Coastal Italian, Harbor Docks, AJ’s Seafood and Oyster Bar and The Deck at Destin Brewery.

Fogg said the program’s reach now extends into citizen science, research collaborations and education — all built on the foundation of removing an invasive species from local reefs.

• “Getting lionfish into the hands of kids who are aspiring to be marine biologists or maybe didn’t even think that fish and biology was something they were interested in,” Fogg said. “Even engaging adults to further the removal efforts and contribute to science and conservation.  Citizen science is a real thing here in Destin-Fort Walton Beach, and lionfish is a great example of that.”

Teachers interested in receiving lionfish for classroom lessons can reach out to Destin-Fort Walton Beach’s Natural Resources team or the Guy Harvey Foundation. More information about the Emerald Coast Open is available at emeraldcoastopen.com.