Kate Brunn was 40 feet underwater off a rocky point on the north side of Guana Island. Bubbles from her scuba regulator floated to the surface. A school of colourful reef fish swam by; minutes later, a large barracuda followed, mouth gaping.
Ms. Brunn, who founded a non-profit organisation last year called the Reef Guardians, wasn’t diving to get a close look at marine life. She was working to preserve it.
Stopping for a moment, she held up a small spear gun and aimed at an exotic looking fish. Aside from its venomous, fan-like spines that swayed back and forth with the swell, it stayed perfectly still. Ms. Brunn took aim and fired.
Mission accomplished: another dead lionfish.
The voracious predators were first introduced to Atlantic waters in 1992 — likely coming from an aquarium in Florida smashed during Hurricane Andrew — and have since spread rapidly up the eastern seaboard and throughout much of the Caribbean.
Here, about 40 diving instructors who have been licensed to spear the invasive species are fighting back.
“We’ve done this a lot,” Ms. Brunn said. “It’s been incredibly successful. It’s all about having eyes in the water.”
See the Sept. 27, 2012 edition for full coverage.
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