Lionfish Chief under Resort Wharf

After two hours of snorkeling and freediving  around Tongan Beach Resort I got exhausted. Remember, I was pushing my housed Nikon D300 with two big Ikelite strobes through the water all that time. I pulled myself onto the wharf, removed my mask and was ready to take off my wetsuit when I heard my son’s voice: “A lionfish, under the wharf!” I jumped into water immediately, it was really there. I heard earlier that day it was there but I could not find it. Now I could see it, chasing a school of tiny fish from one side of the wharf to the other. The water was quite murky yet I was able to make a couple of pictures … from both sides and from behind. Then finally the fish turned around and looked straight into my camera … a chief protecting its territory from intruders.

Keywords: lionfish Pterois “lion fish” underwater undersea Pacific ocean Tonga Vava’u fish