Dick de Bruin

Association, Company, Affiliations: CLA, Caribbean Lionfish Alliance

Location: Aruba

Your favorite quote: A day without diving feels like a day wasted

Your message or mission statement: The lionfish is truly a beautiful fish and I, as a great nature lover, had a lot of trouble with them being killed. Only when it became clear to me that the Lionfish, due to its enormous appetite and extremely fast reproduction without natural enemies, causes enormous damage to the coral reef in the Caribbean and elsewhere, was I convinced that this problem had to be managed. If we don’t do this, many fish species will disappear forever in a few years. I am now happy that together with all other hunters we can remove as much lionfish as possible in order to protect the ecosystem on the coral reef. In this way we can continue to enjoy all the underwater life in the future.

Your latest endeavors and where they take place: Lately I have been developing my underwater photography and filming skills to visualize the lionfish problem for anyone who is not yet convinced that all life on the coral reef is seriously threatened by the lionfish.

What efforts are you most proud of? I am proud of my contribution, which I have been able to make in the past year, in order to protect the Aruban coral reef against an ecological disaster.

Anything else you’d like us to know? If you are interested in Lionfish Hunting with Dick de Bruin, please visit https://dickdebruin22.wixsite.com/arubalionfishhunting. I would like to share a YouTube link with you, which is about a very special event, which happened to me once while diving. It really was a once in a lifetime moment and almost unbelievable, but I can assure you that it actually happened.