Angler spears ‘monster’ lionfish and breaks record

After hunting red snapper, a spearfisherman in Florida turned his attention to lionfish and soon became a record-holder as a result.

After hunting red snapper in waters off Destin, a spearfisherman in Florida turned his attention to lionfish and soon became a record-holder as a result.

On Oct. 18, Donald Vautrinot speared what turned out to be a state record for the longest lionfish caught in the Gulf of Mexico. It measured 18.19 inches and surpassed the old mark of 18.07 caught off Escambia County by Joshua Falkner.

“I saw a monster lionfish and immediately knew I wanted to measure it,” Vautrinot told the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. “I got really excited because I knew the Gulf record was around 18 inches, but I didn’t know exactly and we didn’t have a cell signal to check it out there.”

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Vautrinot and his fishing buddy took it to Okaloosa County coastal resource manager Alex Fogg, who documented the official measurement.

“I was pretty excited and messaged my wife the news right away,” Vautrinot told FWC.

Though large for a lionfish, it fell nearly 6 inches short of the overall state record, which is 18.78 inches caught by Capt. Jimmy Nelson in 2015 in the Atlantic off Islamorada.

Lionfish are an invasive species that are negatively impacting native fish and wildlife. The FWC encourages their removal by holding lionfish derbies and providing a record program that includes categories for length and weight in spearing, hook and line, and junior (under 16) divisions.

Photos courtesy of FWC.