Conservation · Rim Run™ · Reef Defense

CD the
Lion Hunter

One sailor. One trident. Forty countries. An invasive species that has no business being here.

The Most Destructive Fish in the Caribbean — and What One Diver Can Do About It

The lionfish (Pterois volitans) is native to the Indo-Pacific. It has no business being in the Caribbean. It arrived here — almost certainly through home aquariums dumped into Florida waters — and has since spread from the Gulf of Mexico to Brazil with zero natural predators to check its growth.

A single lionfish can reduce the juvenile reef fish population of a coral head by up to 79% within five weeks. It eats constantly, breeds year-round, and is completely unafraid of divers — which makes it uniquely vulnerable to the one intervention that works: a trident, a steady approach, and a clean shot.

Removing them by hand is one of the very few direct actions an individual diver can take that immediately and measurably benefits reef health. CD carries a trident on every dive across the entire Rim Run™ circuit and hunts wherever local law permits. That's 40 countries, 11,500 nautical miles, and every reef in between.

40
Countries on circuit
11,500
Nautical miles
79%
Reef fish lost in 5 weeks
Lionfish on reef
Lionfish spines Catamaran Dan, CD the Lion Hunter
GROAN · Rim Run™ · Live Conservation Record
The Lionfish Scoreboard
Pterois volitans — confirmed kills by CD the Lion Hunter
Hunter
Catamaran Dan
// CD the Lion Hunter
USCG 200-TON MASTER · USN NUCLEAR SUBMARINER
VESSEL: SHAMROCKET (MOOP) · RIM RUN™ 2026–2033
WEAPON: TRIDENT · THEATRE: WESTERN CARIBBEAN + RETURN
Confirmed Kills
6
lionfish
Kill tally — one mark per fish

Hunting Regulations by Country

All 40 Rim Run™ Nations
Country Status Key Conditions & Notes
Mexico✓ LegalCONAPESCA fishing license; trident / pole spear permitted; year-round; no bag limit on lionfish
Belize✓ LegalFisheries license (~$25 BZD); lionfish actively encouraged; multiple organized derbies annually
Guatemala✓ LegalStandard MAGA fishing license; trident fine; avoid Río Dulce no-take zones
Honduras⚠ RestrictedLionfish ONLY; Hawaiian sling only (no spearguns); Roatan Marine Park workshop required (~$50, valid 2 yrs)
Nicaragua✓ LegalINPESCA license; trident permitted; avoid Pearl Cays no-take areas
Panama✓ LegalARAP license (~$20 USD); Bocas del Toro and San Blas open; respect Kuna Yala autonomous zone protocols
Colombia✓ LegalFishing license; lionfish removal encouraged nationwide; avoid Tayrona NP no-take boundary
Venezuela✓ LegalINSOPESCA license; trident fine; no-take rules inside Los Roques Archipelago National Park — check current zone map
Trinidad & Tobago⚠ VerifyGeneral spearfishing restricted; lionfish exception unclear — confirm with T&T Fisheries Division before any diving with trident
Grenada✓ LegalGrenada Fisheries license; active lionfish removal programme; derbies held regularly
St. Vincent & Grenadines✓ LegalSVG Fisheries license; note: NO spearfishing inside Tobago Cays Marine Park boundary — deploy outside only
Barbados✓ LegalNo specific spearfishing regulations; tourist permit $5 USD; trident open except Folkstone Marine Reserve; breath-hold preferred over scuba
St. Lucia✓ LegalSt. Lucia Fisheries license; trident fine; avoid Anse Chastanet marine conservation zone
Martinique✗ RestrictedFrench territory — tourist spearfishing effectively prohibited; no confirmed lionfish exception. Trident stays aboard. Confirm with DEAL Martinique before any spearing
Dominica✗ RestrictedIllegal for foreign visitors to spearfish; no confirmed lionfish exemption. Do not hunt without explicit written authorization from Dominica Fisheries
Guadeloupe✓ LegalFrench DOM — lionfish hunting permitted with pole spear / trident; no specific license for recreational; bag limit applies
Antigua & Barbuda⚠ RestrictedTourist spearfishing prohibited; pole spear for lionfish specifically allowed — trident qualifies as pole spear; confirm with Fisheries Division
Montserrat⚠ VerifyBritish overseas territory; contact Montserrat Fisheries before diving; exclusion zone around volcanic dome applies to all marine activity
St. Kitts & Nevis✓ LegalSKN Fisheries license; trident permitted; lionfish removal encouraged; no closed season
St. Barths✗ RestrictedFrench collectivité — same general restriction as Martinique; tourist spearfishing not permitted; trident stays aboard
St. Maarten (Dutch)✓ LegalNo speargun; pole spear / trident fine; recreational lionfish hunting permitted; no specific license required
Saint-Martin (French)✗ RestrictedFrench side — same restriction as other French territories; do not cross to French side with trident deployed
Anguilla✓ LegalBritish territory; Anguilla Fisheries license; trident fine; excellent underfished habitat; low enforcement pressure
British Virgin Islands✗ ProhibitedAll spearfishing prohibited; no confirmed lionfish exception — trident must remain stowed in BVI waters
US Virgin Islands✓ LegalUSVI DFW license (~$12); trident open outside marine parks; no bag limit on lionfish; St. John NPS waters — check boundary
Puerto Rico✓ LegalPR DRNA license (~$17); no closed season; no bag limit on lionfish; trident and pole spear permitted
Dominican Republic✓ LegalDR Fisheries license; lionfish removal actively encouraged; despacho required for each port movement
Jamaica✓ LegalJamaica Fisheries license; lionfish are the ONLY fish legally taken with underwater air supply (hookah / scuba); trident on breath-hold unrestricted
Grand Cayman⚠ RestrictedDoE course required (~$100 USD) before any spearing; DoE-issued spears only — outside tridents not permitted; complete course before arrival
Turks & Caicos⚠ RestrictedLionfish-only license ($60/yr); Hawaiian sling only — no spearguns; trident (pole spear) should qualify — confirm with TCI Fisheries before diving
Bahamas⚠ RestrictedVisitors: pole spears and Hawaiian slings only (no spearguns) — trident qualifies; no spearfishing in national parks or within 200 yards of many populated islands; DFM license (~$20–40 USD)
French Guiana✗ RestrictedFrench overseas region; same general tourist spearfishing restriction as other French territories — verify with DEAL before diving
Suriname✓ LegalSuriname fishing license; trident fine in coastal and river mangrove zones; lionfish present in coastal waters
Guyana✓ LegalGuyana fishing regulations; trident fine; lionfish presence documented in coastal waters; low enforcement zone
Brazil✓ LegalIBAMA license; avoid all federal MPAs; lionfish present and spreading NE coast; breath-hold preferred; hookah in open water generally accepted
✓ Legal — Hunt freely with local license / standard permit
⚠ Restricted — Legal with specific course, license, or gear constraint
✗ Restricted — Prohibited or unconfirmed — verify before deploying trident

Regulations change. This table reflects best available information as of the Rim Run™ launch date. Always verify with local fisheries authorities before hunting in any jurisdiction. When in doubt, the trident stays aboard — there's always another reef in a country that welcomes the hunt.

All lionfish kills are documented in the GROAN reef health dataset as removal events, contributing to the permanent baseline record of reef conditions across the western Caribbean circuit.

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