Rontu’s confusion about the devilfish adds lightness and humor to this passage; readers at all familiar with dogs can imagine how silly he looks. His humorous confusion, combined with Karana’s happiness, gives the impression that Karana is settling into her life as a single person on the island—and is even enjoying it. In particular, the thrill of the devilfish hunt gives her something to look forward to. And that isn’t something she would’ve been able to do before, as part of the tribe.