Page 12 - AHATA

a8 local
Wednesday 20 november 2024

The Lionfish

And its threat to our marine wild life

major problem for our lo-
cal marine life; if there are
no predators to stimulate
population control of lion-
fish, these fish can continue
to reproduce and expand
to other parts of the Atlan-
tic, become more invasive
and dangerous for other
types of fish.

For Aruba, the lionfish is a
problem especially for our
local coral reefs. According
to Patrick van Brakel, lion- where people would buy li- lives hunting and capturing
fish expert and hunter from onfish from across the world these invasive species, us-
the Hunting Lionfish Aruba to keep in their aquariums. ing them for consumption
foundation, every reef has However, lionfish grow, and and jewelry making.
a “cleaning station”—tiny as these buyers realized
fish that eat algae and oth- that the fish were too much They are caught with a
(Oranjestad)—Despite its protect itself against pred- er types of waste on a reef, upkeep, they were let out hand spear, an object re-
colorful and striking ap- ators using its sharp, color- thus maintaining the reef’s into the ocean to roam sembling a garbage picker
pearance, the lionfish has ful spikes. It is said that the health and providing food free. From continental USA, with 4 sharp prongs. These
become a Caribbean- sting of a lionfish can be up to the fish population in the the lionfish travelled to and spears are used like a sling
wide problem for Atlantic to 100 times more painful area. However, as the lion- invaded the entire Carib- shot to catch lionfish from
sea life. The Aruban marine than that of a bee’s sting. fish feeds off of these tiny bean area, from Aruba, Bo- a distance. These fish are
wild life is also affected by fish, it becomes harder for naire and Curacao up to then put into a collecting
this beautiful dilemma, as it Its natural predators in the the coral reef to maintain New York. In Aruba, lionfish tube and taken out of the
is foreign to our waters and Indo-Pacific are sharks and its health. were discovered in 2009. water. Van Brakel not only
has become a danger to barracudas, but in the Ca- catches them himself, but
our local fish and reefs. ribbean Sea, local fish do Patrick also shares the ori- Controlling the lionfish also cooks them for locals
not recognize the lionfish gins of lionfish in the Ca- population is challenge, as and tourists at The LionFish
Originating from the Indo- as part of their diet. In other ribbean Sea. It is theorized each female fish can lay up Snack Aruba in Paradera.
Pacific Ocean, the lionfish words, the lionfish has no that the introduction of to 40,000 eggs a day. Lucki- This way, he does his part
is a relatively small fish. It predators in the Caribbean these fish in the Atlan- ly, we have people like van in protecting the local wild
has no teeth, but it does Sea. And this becomes a tic happened in Florida, Brakel who dedicate their life.q

Prohibited by law: leaving the island with seashells, white sand or corals

(Oranjestad)—Often times, the cus- pay before leaving. This is surely not
toms department at the airport inter- a pleasant experience for the tourist.
cepts many tourists leaving the island This also leads to a negative reaction
with seashells, white sand and/or cor- which can put our tourism in a nega-
als as souvenirs. tive light.
Though we love to accommodate our
Conforming to the international treaty visitors, let’s all give nature the respect
of CITES and our local law which pro- it deserves by protecting our environ-
tects our Flora & Fauna, it is absolutely ment. Stop collecting seashells, white
prohibited to take any seashell, sand sand and corals from our shores and
and coral outside of Aruba. This is to stop buying or accepting these from
protect our environment. The high local sellers or companies.
number of seashells, coral and amount
of sand confiscated is very strange We want our future generations and
and it is suspected that our own locals visitors to enjoy the beauty of our
are the ones selling these to the tour- beaches, shells and corals in a sustain-
ists, which is unacceptable. able way, without destroying or dis-
Upon confiscation at the airport, you rupting the Aruban ecosystem. Help us
can also face a fine that they have to protect what is ours!q