Florida Grouper Laws

There is a total daily baggage limit per fisherman for groupers in the Florida Keys and Key West. Florida Keys anglers are allowed to keep up to three groupers per person when fishing in the waters of the Florida Keys and Key West. Note, however, that only one black or gagged grouper can be kept per person per day. This black or gag is one of three total groupers max. The current regulations for recreational gag groupers can be found MyFWC.com/Marine and click on “Recreation Regulations”, “Reef Fish” and then on “Merout”. This page will be updated with changes to the regulations. Already registered? Mandatory participation to fish for groupers in Florida waters. He said, like the tarpon and other large fish, that it is useless to bring home a Goliath grouper. The value is in the extraction. Summer is fast approaching, which means grouper season has arrived. Grouper fishing in the Florida Keys and Key West is subject to Atlantic grouper fishing regulations under the Florida Wildlife Regulations. Monroe County: Several Atlantic grouper species (red, black, yellowfinch, yellowmouth, scamp, rock behind, red rear, red posterior, coney, and gray) are closed from January 1 to April 30 in all Atlantic state and federal waters, including all state waters off Monroe County (Atlantic and Gulf side).

During this closure, anglers will be able to catch groupers in the open federal waters of the Gulf and return to Monroe County Harbor by sailing in the enclosed waters of the Atlantic, provided the vessel proceeds directly to port without stopping to fish. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission could vote next month on approving or amending a proposed change to the regulations for the Goliath Grouper fishery, a species protected from harvesting in state and federal waters since 1990. The FWC meets on 6 and 7 October in St. Augustine. Dive charter operators in South Florida were pleased with the announcement. During the months of August to October, charter flights bring divers to the pipeline to observe spawning clusters, which can include between five and 25 groupers weighing 500 pounds and more. Recreational harvesting of groupers in Gulf waters ends on August 30, 2022. FWC approved this closure to coincide with the recently announced closure by NOAA Fisheries in federal waters to prevent overfishing and exceeding the 2022 quota. The recreational harvest will take place on the 1st.

It reopened in January 2023. Many fishermen in southwest Florida have been clamoring for a Goliath grouper season for 20 years or more. The gag grouper, or simply “gag,” is usually found from North Carolina south of the Yucatan Peninsula. There are gag recordings in Cuba, Bermuda and Brazil; However, they are rare. Juveniles reach as far as Massachusetts. Gags are absent in the Caribbean and the Bahamas. Coloration varies by sex and age. In general, the gag is gray to light brown with darker wavy markings that create a marbled appearance on the sides of the body. The gag and the black grouper are very similar.

The main difference between the two is a bone on part of the cheek area. The preopercle, which has the shape of a boomerang, is the most important bone of the gill plate. On a gag it is angular with a serrated spur, while on a black grouper it is uniformly rounded. Red grouper prefer shallow rock bottom habitats offshore or rocky outcrops at depths of 16 to 1083 feet (5 to 330 meters).5 This fish is rarely seen near coral reefs. It is a groundfish; During the spawning season, males are territorial and somewhat sedentary, digging holes as residential areas. The spawning season runs from January to early June, depending on the region. In general, the spawning peak occurs from March to May. As with other species of the grouper family, the red grouper is a protogynous hermaphrodite whose life begins as females and most females pass to males aged 7 to 14 years. 6 State: 1 per person in the 3 grouper aggregatesFederal: 1 per vessel per day in the 3 grouper aggregate Earhart said he had customers who chartered him for the thrill, catch and release a Goliath grouper larger than the fisherman. Red grouper is found in the western Atlantic, from the Carolinas to southern Brazil, including the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda; However, it is more common in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. There have been reports of red groupers sometimes seen as far away as Massachusetts.

In general, the red grouper is dark brown in color with a reddish tint on the back and sides, fading below to a pale pink. Its face, around the cheek, muzzle and eyes, may have dark spots, and the sides of the body usually have irregularly shaped white spots. The oral mucosa of the red grouper is scarlet orange in color. The, dorsal and caudal fins have dark margins. The Nassau grouper is a similar species, but it has a large black spot at the base of the caudal fin, while the red grouper does not have a black spot. Goliath groupers can be caught in the waters of South Florida. Small Goliaths – in the 20- to 36-inch length range proposed by FWC regulations – spend their teenage years in estuaries near red mangrove roots, rocky shorelines and bridge posts. They are commonly caught in the Indian River Lagoon System, the Everglades, the Florida Keys, and the waterways of southwest Florida. If you are accused of not following these rules when fishing for groupers, you could be sued. It is a common misconception among our customers that they have just received a ticket.

A quote for an undersized or oversized fish is not a simple ticket, it is a criminal offense. The officers could have sent you to jail for a second-degree offense. However, instead of putting you in jail, which is not very convenient for maritime law enforcement, they will send you a request to appear in court to answer for the criminal offense. Keep in mind that fishing for reef fish, which the law considers a grouper, requires the use of circular hooks and a phishing device. Be sure to fish with the proper equipment, otherwise you may end up with a quote for grouper fishing in the Florida Keys without the proper equipment. The FWC is committed to collecting critical recreational fisheries data to inform the management of groupers and other reef fish. The State Reef Fish Survey uses face-to-face interviews and a postal survey to gather information about recreational reef fish, such as groupers, from private boats. These methods provide the FWC with a clearer picture of the health of reef fish stocks across the state and help ensure the long-term sustainability of Florida`s recreational fisheries.