Video: Monstrous Goliath Grouper Snagged by Kayaker

Check out the video at the bottom of this post.

A kayaker out fishing off Sanibel reeled in more than he bargained for recently when a gigantic goliath grouper took his bait.

Jon Black from Crazy Lure Tackle shop is the lucky fisherman who managed to throw out the line, snagging what he says is the “largest bottom fish ever from a kayak in Sanibel, Fla.”

Black’s encounter with the massive fish was caught on video, which has since been posted to YouTube. The video shows Black’s struggle with the fish that was nearly as big as his kayak. It also shows how easily a fish that size can snap a fishing rod.

The fish itself measured in at 83 inches in length and more than 73 inches in girth, according to the YouTube posting. It weighed an estimated 552 pounds.

See Also:

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Black’s goliath grouper is a big one, but it’s not the biggest ever caught in the state of Florida.

Goliath grouper can grow up to 800 pounds. The record catch in Florida came in at 680 pounds, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. That catch was made off Fernandina Beach back in 1961. The fish, however, is considered a prohibited species. That means it is illegal harvest or possess them. Those that are caught, must be returned to the water “free, alive and unharmed,” the state’s website says.

Based on Black’s video, it appears his fish made it back into the water free, alive and unharmed. The same cannot be said for his fishing rod.

Goliath grouper are also known to snag catches right out from under the noses of fishermen. Last year, a monster of a grouper jumped up and ate a 4-foot blacktip shark right off a fisherman’s line in Bonita Springs.

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