Press Release: Famed artist and marine conservationist, Dr. Guy Harvey, will be in Pensacola May 15-17 to kick off his art exhibit at the Pensacola Museum of Art. Harvey will also spend time at the first annual Lionfish Removal and Awareness Day (LRAD) on Saturday. The free lionfish festival will have food, drink, music and five celebrity chefs preparing lionfish at the picturesque Plaza de Luna at the end of Palafox Street.
The lionfish event is being organized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, Guy Harvey Magazine, Coast Watch Alliance and the Gulf Coast Lionfish Coalition. A live radio broadcast with Cat Country 98.7FM on Saturday from 2pm – 4pm will feature Dr. Harvey discussing how the invasive fish is threatening our oceans.
Visitors to Plaza de Luna can revel in the festivities, eat lionfish and learn what they can do to help stop the spread of the species. Tanks with live lionfish will be on display and a lionfish tournament will be underway bringing hundreds of fish to the event. After enjoying freshly prepared fish and cold beverages, folks can stroll down to PMOA and admire Harvey’s art at the gallery.
While the major festivities are headquartered in Pensacola, lionfish hunters from the Panhandle to Key West are being encouraged to spear lionfish and report their kill. The FWC plans on keeping track of how many lionfish are culled that weekend and post the results to their website, www.reefrangers.com, a site dedicated specifically to the lionfish issue.
For more information on the Guy Harvey art exhibit and LRAD go to: www.reefrangers.com or www.pensacolamuseum.org/