We had calm conditions for blenny hunting among the shore rocks lining Bonaire’s coastal road. Finding cagey little fishes hiding in a thousand shadowy hiding holes is tricky business.

Twenty minutes into the dive I
see three huge tarpon, all measuring more than 5 feet, parade past. It’s obvious they are onto something, so I follow them to the ghost-white remains of two wahoo. Larger fishes — permit, palometa and bonefish by the dozens — swirl around the perimeter. But the kings of the party are the big silver tarpon.

The late-morning buffet comes compliments of a fisherman who cleans his daily catch on the back of his dinghy.

Tarpon thrive in Bonaire for a number of reasons. For starters, the large fish evolved to inhabit calm shore waters using modified air bladders
to process gulps of surface air when oxygen is low. The local tarpon have learned to supplement their diets with handouts, and lately, feed after sunset using the lights of night divers to target prey. But without question, their greatest survival advantage lies in the fact that they are not good table fare.