Florida’s largest grouper will now be legally served on a dinner plate after Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation (FWC) Commission voted to allow 200 Goliath grouper to be caught with a fishing pole and circle hook.
Rule restrictions are designed to provide sustainable access to the fishery which prohibits taking them in South Florida, from Martin County through the Keys. It would limit the catch in Everglades National Park to 50.
Additional consideration was given to protect the biggest individuals which tend to live in deeper water.
The goliath grouper is one of the most recognized fish owing to its massive size and curiously friendly underwater behavior toward divers.
Weighing as much as 800 pounds and growing taller than a human, these massive reef inhabitants are prized attractions for local dive operations in the Gulf and southeast Florida.
During the late summer, many will concentrate near wrecks and reefs in large numbers to spawn which makes the species appear abundant.
Intense exploitation closed the fishery in the 1990s and kept the fish a decade later. The population has grown over the years due to the successful management of the fishery in Florida and FWC expects the trend to continue.
But the recovery of the species is debated by interest groups citing statewide growth has not been replicated in other parts of the ocean beyond Florida.
Other groups for the ban are dive and snorkel operations, conservation groups, scientists, and people concerned about mercury poisoning from consuming the grouper.
The FWC’s final rule sets a limited, highly regulated harvest of goliath grouper through a lottery draw.
Anglers who wanted to end the ban say the goliath predators are overcrowding the reefs and harming the ecosystem by eating all the fish, including swallowing anglers’ catch using their powerful gulping bites.
Yet scientists say groupers usually eat crabs and small fish, not exactly what fishers are targeting.
Fishers say the no-kill ban achieved its goal and the population has rebounded. Beyond the fish as a nuisance, there is debate on the science behind the stock assessment.
As with many fish species, knowing exactly how many types of fish exist is difficult to determine. There was never a baseline on the numbers before the population decline which challenges an accurate recovery assessment.
Counting fish with stock assessments can be a lagging indicator due to the time involved and limited resources required for an accurate survey.
Fisheries management brought the Goliath population back from its imperilment, but beyond the confines of state boundaries, there is little to show for any resurgence.
The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources has placed the fish on the worldwide Red List as “critically endangered” since 2016.
New rules go into effect July 1, 2022. The first lottery draws could occur in the fall of 2022, and the first season could occur in spring 2023.