New!! Monthly Contests - click here

Participate in a REEF Lionfish Derby to help protect the reefs
and have fun competing for great prizes!

What is a derby?

A lionfish derby is a one day team competition to collect as many lionfish as possible. Teams collect lionfish during daylight hours using a variety of capture methods while either SCUBA diving, free diving, or snorkeling.  Prizes are awarded to the teams with the most, biggest, and smallest lionfish caught.

Derbies are important venues for invasive species education/outreach, training, research and awareness.  Teams and spectators learn how to properly collect and handle venemous lionfish and why they are detrimental to ocean ecosystems, as well as taste several delicious recipes.  Derbies also draw media attention to the Atlantic lionfish invasion and help promote development of the commercial lionfish market.  Specimens collected during the derbies support ongoing lionfish research and are provided to a number of government and university research partners.  And...they remove a lot of lionfish!

Lionfish are a non-native species in this region with no controlling predators and large appetites for native fish and cursteceans. Removing lionfish from the reef helps minimize impacts to the delicate ecostystems found in our coastal waters. For info on past lionfish derbies click here.

Total lionfish count for all REEF-sponsored derbies in the Florida Keys, South Florida, and the Bahamas:
2011 - 3,542
2010 - 1,578
2009 - 1,408

Upcoming Derbies - Register for 2012 derbies here!

Florida - Sponsored at Platinum level by Diver's Direct

• April 28 - Miami at Black Point Marina - rules, registration form, team waivers, understanding of risk forms


• June 30 - Fort Lauderdale at 15th Street Fisheries


• August 18 - Palm Beach at Sailfish Marina


• September 8 - Key Largo at Coconuts
  

Bahamas

• June 16 - Abaco, Bahamas at Green Turtle Cay Resort and Marina

Download Green Turtle Derby rules, entry form and legal waiver (required)

General Derby Participation Information

Lad Akins netting a lionfish: Photo by Stuart Cove

Friday Before Derby Day:

5:30 - 6:30pm: Late registration at derby location
6:30pm: Captain's Meeting* at derby location

*Captain's Meeting is mandatory  for the team captains, and all team members are encouraged to attend.  There will be a briefing on safe collection and handling procedures for lionfish.
*Each member of the team must fill out a liability waiver and submit it before or at the Captain's Meeting. 

Saturday Of Derby Day:  

Sunrise: Teams may begin collecting lionfish.
5:00 pm: All lionfish must be turned in to the scoring station at the derby location.
5:00 - 7:00pm: Scoring, social and lionfish tasting open to the public.
7:00 - 7:30pm: Raffle and awards ceremony.