Lionfish Hunting Tournaments
Get involved with lionfish removal by attending one of the following derbies or events.
Emerald Coast Open
The Emerald Coast Open (ECO) is the largest lionfish tournament in the world! In 2023, ECO had 144 participants and removed 24,699 lionfish throughout the tournament! We are looking forward to an exciting 2024 tournament!
Save the date for 2024 event: May 17-18, 2024
2023 Standings
The 2023 Emerald Coast Open lionfish tournament was a huge success. With 144 participants this year, the lionfish population took a hit. We had several new teams participating and rank this year. After several years of hard work, we were excited to award one of our most active and dedicated teams, Deep Water Mafia 1 with the highest prize of Most Lionfish.
Records Broken
- Broke record for Most in main tournament: 19,560
- Broke record for Most in pre tournament: 5,139
- Broke record for the overall total: 24,699
- Broke record for largest 5 times during this years event.
2024 Lionfish Tournament & Event Calendar
FWC Lionfish Challenge
A free summer-long lionfish tournament open to recreational and commercial competitors of all ages around the state of Florida.
Timeline: May 24 to September 2
Full tournament rules and to register, visit FWCreefrangers.com/lionfish-challenge.
Lionfish Tournament News
Marathon’s Rachel Bowman is Still the Queen of the Lion(fish)
Marathon’s own lionfish hunting savant Rachel Bowman took her talents to Destin, Florida on May 14 and 15 for the Emerald Coast Open Lionfish Tournament, a yearly contest aimed at removing the invasive, destructive and delicious Indo-Pacific fish.
Divers catch a record 24,699 invasive lionfish in tournament off Florida’s Gulf Coast
It’s tough to say which are more disliked in Florida: invasive pythons or invasive lionfish. But based on sheer numbers, venomous lionfish appear to be besting eviction efforts. Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/state/florida/article275739561.html#storylink=cpy
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