I’ve been an avid diver for over 40 years. In 2006, I relocated to South Florida, and for the first four years of diving nearly every weekend, I did not see a single Lionfish. Then it all changed. Beginning in 2010 I saw a Lionfish occasionally while diving. Starting in 2012 I began to see Lionfish on every single dive.
I’m an avid hunter, underwater photographer and collector for my salt water aquarium tanks. Some years back I made the mistake of capturing a Lionfish and added “Leo” to my tank only to watch the beast consume every other fish in his new home. Leo ate up to 90% of his body weight! If Leo was doing this amount of damage to my 100 gallon ecosystem, I could only imagine the harm this species is doing to our natural reefs. The more I thought about it, the more upset I became about what was happening to my beloved ocean. Something needed to be done.
Enter the Lionfish Slayer®. Lionfish are not, as of yet, amassing in spots on every dive, but most divers see at least one if not a few on every dive. I realized that there was a demand for a Lionfish eradication tool that was currently not being met in the market. The existing tools geared towards hunting Lionfish fell short in many ways. The Lionfish Slayer® is designed to be attached to your BC and convenient access for when/if you come across a Lionfish. When you do, pull out the Lionfish Slayer®, kill the fish and either keep it or leave it on the ocean floor and continue with the dive. You’ve just saved several thousand potential offspring of that Lionfish from killing our reefs! Now enjoy the rest of your dive.
Cons of hunting lionfish with standard tools
- With pole spears, the diver is required to get very close to the fish, risking the chance of a sting.
- The pole spear typically requires one hand to constantly be engaged for loading (sling).
- The spear tip is a single spear causing the fish to twirl around the shaft as the diver attempts to cut the spines off.
- The spear tip is fully exposed at all times causing a safety hazard for the diver, as well as their buddies. I personally witnessed on more than one occasion a diver ascending below a diver at their safety stop and getting punctured in the head on their ascent by their buddy’s spear.
As a result, I created the Lionfish Slayer® (patented.) This eradication tool comes with many features focused around safety and accuracy.
Pros with LionFish Slayer®
- The Lionfish Slayer® is more compact than a spear pole.
- A diver can attach the Lionfish Slayer® to the BC or to the back of their BC on a retaining cord and not have to carry it until you want to use it. This frees your hands up for photography or a spear gun.
- A diver can cock the Lionfish Slayer® and not have to have hand tension “cocked” while lining up on the fish or chasing after the fish.
- Protection of the reef is a plus with the closed end version of the Lionfish Slayer®. The potential of damaging the reef during your shot is greatly reduced.
- Most of all, when transporting, the spear tip is safe inside the tube out of harm’s way keeping you and your buddy safe during all stages of your dive.
Multi-purpose Hunting Tool
The Lionfish Slayer® can also be used to shoot smaller reef fish in addition to hunting Lionfish. Hogfish are delicious and cannot be caught on hook and line; only by spearfishing. The LionFish Slayer® is perfect for hunting smaller game such as this. Bringing home dinner after a day of diving is a breeze with the Lionfish Slayer®!
