COURSE INTRODUCTION

Welcome to the Belize Lionfish Project's online training course.  The course was prepared to provide training for marine guides, students and visitors.  The course can be used as a prerequisite for applying for your Lionfish Hunter card from the Belize Fisheries Department, or for the PADI Specialty Invasive Lionfish Tracker Course.

There are eight sections in the Lionfish Course.  Depending on your schedule, you can work through a section at a time, or run through the entire course in less than two hours.  At the end of each section there is a short quiz that you can test your knowledge.  The answer key is provided on the next slide after the quiz.  There is a comprehensive final exam that must be submitted at the end of the course to be graded and returned.  Once you have successfully passed the final exam you will receive a certificate of completion that you can present to the Fisheries Department along with your application for the Lionfish Hunter card, or to your PADI Instructor.  For those taking the course to complete the PADI Invasive Lionfish Tracker Course, please see details below.

I - OVERVIEW OF INVASION

• Invasion theories
• Invasion history
• Impacts of lionfish introduction

III -  PREY & PREDATORS

• Feeding
• Prey
• Predators

IV - ABIDING BY FISHERY REGULATIONS

• Fishery regulations
• Permitted culling devices​

VI - TRYING LIONFISH

• Cooking
• Selling and buying
• Lionfish Jewelry

II - LIONFISH BIOLOGY

• Scientific Classification
• Morphology
• Habitat preference
• Life Cycle​​

IV - DANGERS OF HUNTING LIONFISH

• Difference between venomous and poisonous
• Ciguatera fish poisoning
• Envenomation
• First Aid

V - CAPTURE TECHNIQUES

• Capture methods
• Hazards of feeding to other fish
• Cleaning

8 - GET INVOLVED

• Honor Roll Tournament
• Adopt a Reef

• Submitting catch reports

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Integrating with the PADI Invasive Lionfish Hunter Course

If you are taking this course to receive your PADI Lionfish Hunter Specialty card please note you will need to complete the practical portion of the course which will include two dives and the following activities:

• Go over Knowledge Review with your PADI Instructor
• Practice session with polespears
• Culling lionfish
• Safe handling underwater

A list of PADI Instructors that offer the course in Belize will be sent to you upon program completion.  The following Course Standards will apply for those seeking the PADI Invasive Lionfish Tracker Specialty Course.
​

Minimum Instructor Rating:

Prerequisites:

Minimum Age:

OW Ratios:

Maximum Depth:

Recommended Hours:

​Minimum Open Water Dives:

​PADI Invasive Lionfish Tracker Distinctive Specialty Instructor

​PADI Open Water Diver, or qualifying prerequisite

15 years

4:1

OW: 18 metres/60 feet or AOW: 30 metres/100 feet

​10

​2

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