Splash Dive Center: Combating the Belize Lionfish Invasion

The word is that the beautiful but uninvited lionfish have invaded our natural Caribbean waters in Belize. How did this invasion start?  It seems that they were released or escaped from aquariums and have spread exponentially from there. Lionfish are native to the Indo-Pacific and are in balance with the ecosystems in that area.  In the Caribbean they are voracious predators of marine life but are not on the food chain for any of our Caribbean fish. Lionfish can easily be identified by their red-and white zebra stripes, with feathery pectoral fins.

Facts:

  Lionfish are members of the scorpionfish/Scorpaenidae family and subfamily […]

Conservation of the Belize Barrier Reef: A UNESCO World Heritage Site

 
Let’s face it! Our world is awesome! Belize is proud to be the home of the largest Barrier Reef in the Western Hemisphere, a haven for awesome and diverse marine life. The Belize Barrier Reef UNESCO World Heritage Marine Site, and if you have ever had the good fortune to dive or snorkel in this area, you will understand why Charles Darwin declared it to be “the most remarkable reef in the West Indies”. Charles Darwin, the originator of the theory of evolution studied “life and its origins” and found it in Belize’s Barrier Reef.
 

 
The Belize Barrier Reef is […]