The SS Tadpole patrols the beautiful coral reefs of the Talaysedaeng Sea, six divers on a mission to prevent the invasive Southern-Fox Fish from destroying the ecosystem. With a special net container and their trusty spears, they dive a hundred meters deep and skewer every SFF they find. Lazy hunters unused to humans, they float along the reefs and tend to just stick their venomous spines up in response to danger, which can’t prevent a sudden spear jab.

“We tend to go out in the morning,” the Tadpole’s captain, Jaturun, said in an interview. “Row a couple miles out, grab our spears, then dive. We each usually grab a hundred before we call it for the day, so it’s pretty good numbers.”

But what do they do with the fish?

“The spines are only venomous as the tip, so you can just snip ‘em. Then scrape the scales off and cook it or sell ‘em, the EA (Eco Authority) works with a lot of the restaurants.”

It’s a business decision to hunt the Southern-Fox Fish?

“Nah, haha, it’s a passion project. We all chip in ‘cause the sale doesn’t really cover it. But we uh, we grew up here. We swam in these reefs since we were little kids, we don’t wanna let them get destroyed.”

Is there anything others can do to help the conservation effort?

“I know a lot of fishermen, it’d probably be as simple as like, if you see a Fox Fish just take it out when you’re down there. But wear gloves when handling them! The venom shouldn’t kill you, but it can make you real sick if you ain’t careful.”

With diligent fishermen like the crew of the SS Tadpole, hopefully the Talaysedeang Sea can one day be cleared of dreaded Southern-Fox Fish.