Page 7 - AHATA

A9
LOCAL Tuesday 3 June 2025

The Lionfish

And its threat to our marine wild life

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

tors in the Caribbean Sea. Patrick also shares the origins