courtesy of: The Morning News
We recall last year’s diligent efforts by Aruba Marine Park and the Department of Fisheries of Santa Rosa along with different organizations, how they labored to control the Lionfish population in our waters around Aruba.
We vividly remember the very successful Lionfish Derby. That was a first time experience for Aruba. Lionfish were reported in our waters during 2009 for the first time. Many divers and others participated and more than 2000 Lionfish were captured and eliminated.
Last year the Aruba Marine Park Foundation organized the Lionfish Derby in March 2011, which was followed by the Lionfish Control Championship that ran from June to December 2011. The organization is intent on continuing to motivate the various diver operators, divers known as the “Lionfish hunters or slayers,” to continue eliminating and controlling the Lionfish population in our waters.
The Fisheries section of the Aruba Marine Park Foundation expects to continue getting the cooperation from the different stakeholders to carry on their efforts of controlling this very invasive species.
The educational sector of our local community has shown much interest in our endeavor to eliminate Lionfish. Various educational institutions have focused in on the problem we face with Lionfish. Students of IPA, Colegio Arubano and other schools have prepared Lionfish projects or of environmental problems which are threatening our coral riffs around the island.
IPA student Mrs. Gyseth Arends-Jansen has spent 350 hours working on a Lionfish project. With the help and cooperation of the Fisheries section and the Aruba Marine Park Foundation, Mrs. Arends-Jansen was able to complete the Lionfish project. The Lionfish project has become a part of an IPA assignment. It is now the social project that all IPA students are required to fulfill for their study program.
Mrs. Gyseth Arends-Jansen is an open water diver since 7 years ago. She has participated as “Lionfish hunter” during the Lionfish Derby held in June 2011. Because of her diving expertise she became interested in the Lionfish project.
Gyseth Arends-Jansen has produced a “teachers toolkit” replete with didactic material to teach 5th and 6th grades of our primary schools. Students will learn everything they need to know about Lionfish. Last week they held an exposition of all the material needed to teach classes in this matter. Everyone was simply amazed and impressed with the material produced.
The Foundation sincerely hopes that the teaching material would be used on a regular basis as part of lessons on nature. Our children need to be well versed in what is happening in our waters; they need to have access to all the information regarding Lionfish.
