Cullers dove beneath the waves over the weekend to hunt lionfish on the local reefs and then headed to a restaurant to get a taste of their catch.
The Cayman United Lionfish League, known as CULL, held its 35th tournament on Saturday and Sunday, during which 142 of the invasive species, weighing a total of 38.2kg (84.2 pounds), were removed from the reef.
The speared fish were weighed and measured, and then cooked and eaten, at the Tomfoodery restaurant in Camana Bay, with chef Thomas Tennant making an array of dishes, including ceviche, sandwiches and rundown, for the cullers, supporters and other diners to taste.
Prizes were awarded for the biggest, smallest, heaviest and most fish caught.
One of the organisers, Mark Orr, said this year’s catch was smaller than in many earlier tournaments, with culling teams reporting that many of the usual spots where lionfish are frequently found had fewer of the fish than normal.
Orr said the seas were still rough following the passage of Hurricane Ian less than a week before the tournament, and this may have affected the catch numbers.
“Lionfish don’t like strong currents or turbulent water,” he said, “so they may have gone deeper or moved into the seagrass, rather than stayed in the normal reef structures you find them in, where they might be more exposed.”
He added, “We had three teams, with a total of 10 cullers, so getting 142 fish is still quite good.”
This tournament had been postponed twice before, so even though some teams could not make it this weekend, it was decided that the cull should go ahead.
The culls are usually held about four times a year, but due to COVID and rough weather, the frequency of the tournaments has decreased in recent years. However, Orr says he hopes that from next year, CULL can return to holding four a year.
Results
The winner for the smallest lionfish, measuring 71mm (2.8 inches) was team Surf & Turf, with Ambassadors Divers in both second and third place (107mm and 113mm).
Surf & Turf also caught the biggest lionfish – 292mm (11.5 inches), while team Salt Shaker was in second place with 280mm and Ambassador Divers in third with 275mm.
The team that caught the most weight of fish per culler was Ambassador Divers, with 7.8kg (17.2 pounds); Salt Shaker in second place with 5.1kg per culler; and Surf & Turf with 2.61kg.
Ambassador Divers also caught the most lionfish per culler, with 47.5 fish speared; Salt Shaker was in second place with 16 fish per culler; and Surf & Turf followed with 7.17 per culler.
Related Videos
