Yesterday was a fantastic day and we are confident that such people can make a difference. Citizen scientists’ involvement is paramount to tackle environmental issues. It’s great that Relionmed-Life project succeeded in bringing all these amazing people together.

Together with 32 volunteers (30 Scuba and 2 free divers) we removed lionfish from a marine protected area of Cyprus.

Cold waters at 16-17 °C did not appear prohibitive for lionfish populations which are there and cause havoc to the local biodiversity.

A total of 129 lionfish were removed from 12 teams of 2-3 diver pairs. Largest lionfish was 39 cm TL and 844 g, and smallest was 10 cm TL and 4 g.

We are extremely grateful to all the divers who dived with a smile in the cold waters, and all the other volunteers who joined to support the event and our cause. Special reference should be made to chef George Xanthou who prepared delicious lionfish soup and lionfish cooked in pitta bread, the Octo Microbrewery who provided fantastic local beer, the Photo Phoenix Studio for covering the event with footage, the BlueInstinct Underwater act for assisting the event for extra safety, and of course our partners in the project University of Plymouth, Enalia Physis Environmental Research Center and University Of Cyprus who supported us. The event wouldn’t be possible without your support.

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