蜜芽传媒

Lionfish are beautiful creatures, covered in red and white stripes, with tall venomous spines on their backs.
In the Caribbean they eat all sorts of species and have an insatiable appetite, so there is an ongoing battle to keep their numbers under control. On the small island of Bonaire, measures are being taken to try and control their numbers. Conservationist and award-winning photographer Lorenzo Mittiga lives there and describes the impact of the invasive species on the local ecosystem, and says one of the ways they were introduced into the sea could have been when a hurricane destroyed aquariums close to the coast.

"Because this fish is very adaptable and has a very high capability of reproduction, it took over the other species in the Atlantic. They eat basically everything that fits in their mouth. They are great predators and they eat all the juveniles of the reef fish."

(Image: A Lionfish floating above coral Credit: Lorenzo Mittiga )