As smaller fish species dwindle and the lionfish population explodes, marine specialist search for ways to protect the delicate ecological balance. Shark training may be their answer.
Known for it’s flashy stripes and venomous spines, the lionfish is one of the ocean’s most aggressive predators. It’s a native to the Indo-Pacific ocean. How did an Indo-Pacific native end up in the Caribbean where they were never previously seen? Good question.
Lion fish sightings in 2012 (Map credit: USGS)
While the exact origin of the Atlantic Lionfish explosion is debated, many blame it on Hurricane Andrew. During the hurricane, an aquarium broke releasing several fish into the ocean. Untouchable by the typical predators in the Caribbean, these fish reproduced freely and the population grew exponentially from there. As the map above shows, lionfish can now be spotted along the Caribbean coast of South America and as far north as Connecticut.
The coastal ecosystem, which was stressed before, is experiencing large changes with the addition of the new predator. Fish that previously dwelled amongst the coral in the bay now struggle to survive. Lionfish are known to eat any fish that will fit into their jaws. In Roatan Marine Park in Honduras, there has been a visible decline in the number of juvenile fish since 2009, the year lionfish first started to appear in the waters surrounding the islands. The Roatan Island coral reefs, like any ecosystem, maintain a fragile equilibrium- one where predators eat, but smaller fish are still able to breed and survive. The lionfish invasion threw this balance off. Without help, the lionfish could eat the smaller fish species into extinction.
Marine specialists in the Roatan Marine Park think they may have a solution. Sharks, though not eager to munch on the invader, have the proper enzymes to digest lionfish toxins. If we can teach sharks to eat lionfish, a new ecological balance may be found that keeps the invasive predator in check and gives other species a chance to survive.
Sharks spying a lionfish (Photo Credit: National Geographic)
If you think that training sharks sounds like a daunting task, you are not alone. However, marine specialists say that with a sharks fast learning rate, it should be a breeze. Sharks can learn ten times faster than a cat. In one experiment, a dead lionfish was thrown into the middle of a shiver or sharks. The lionfish was gone with in a few minutes. Mistakenly, a living lionfish dared swim close to these sharks only moments later. He too suffered a fast death. While training the shark will take some time, it definitely has potential.
Al Campo International lends a hand at Roatan Marine Park in the project Marine protection and Lionfish Capture in Honduras. Participants not only earn their scuba PADI certification, but get to put their new scuba skills to use protecting the reefs.
Resources and Further Reading:
Al Campo International Lionfish Project
NPR: Spreading Lionfish Invasion Threatens Bahamas
WRI Insights: Lionfish invasion threatens coral reefs...
USGS Lionfish Fact sheet and map
National Geographic: Sharks Taught to Hunt Alien Lionfish
Time Science: Taming the Lionfish
Roatan Marine Park