Caye Caulker 3rd Annual Lionfish Derby competition shows a decrease in the invasive species
Starting at 7AM, boats headed out to sea fully equipped with everything they needed to catch as many lionfish as they could and hopefully claim one of the fabulous prizes the tournament had to offer. After approximately eight hours at sea, teams started to arrive back to the island around 3PM with their ice boxes full of lionfish, ready to weigh and count. The weighing station saw a large group of spectators gathered to view the huge amounts of fish caught. The size of lionfish ranged from one and a half inches up to 11 inches. A total of 597 lionfish were caught during the tournament.
At the end of the day when all the catches had been counted and weighed, the respective winners were announced. The award for "most lionfish caught through scuba diving" went to San Pedro's Sagebrush Team, who caught a total of 121 lionfish. The win for the "most lionfish caught via free diving" was French Angel, who caught a total of 115 lionfish. The prize for the "smallest lionfish" went to Caye to Happiness for catching a fish of only one and a half inches in size, while, the prize for the "largest lionfish" went to Scuba Sensation, for an 11-inch fish. Majority of the teams decided to donate all of their catch to Barrier Reef Sports Bar & Grill to serve up.
Click here to read the rest of the article and see LOTS more photos in the San Pedro Sun
Amigos Del Mar Takes Lionfish Tournament In Caye Caulker
The Amigos del Mar Dive Shop Team, San Pedro, came out victorious at the 3rd Annual Lionfish Derby held in Caye Caulker on Saturday, March 24, 2018. Teammates Anita, Shamir, Mikey and Maverick managed to dive and catch 121 Lionfish and the first place trophy. The tournament is sponsored by the Barrier Reef Sports Bar in Caye Caulker in collaboration with Oceana Belize. Prizes were given out for the most lionfish caught, the smallest lionfish and the largest lionfish. Congratulations to Amigos del Mar of San Pedro and all other participants/winners at the 3rd Annual Lionfish Derby.