It’s official, I am obsessed with goliath groupers.
I’ve caught a few normal sized grouper down in Florida and even those guys put up one heck of a fight, so I can’t even imagine how hard it is to reel in a 500 pounder.
These beasts typically hang out near coral and artificial reefs and while they’re typically described as a friendly fish, it takes a whole lot of eating to grow to that size, so they’re going to need more than some crustaceous to get their calories in, which leads them to scoop up a free meal when the opportunity arises.
This video comes to us from Florida. Well it’s at least highly likely to be from Florida as that’s where the usual range of both creatures overlap, and it shows a group of guys on a fishing trip bringing a small blacktip shark to the boat side.
They’re clearly being very cautious because they don’t want to lose a pinky like this guy did, but while they were slowly bringing the helpless shark closer, a big ole goliath grouper swam up from the depths and swallowed the entire shark whole before turning around heading off to digest.
It all happened in the blink of an eye but man, aren’t these fish just so impressive? As many comments say, there’s always a bigger and badder fish out there and I feel fortunate that I can watch them from the comfort of my own home.
Kayak Fisherman Breaks Rod On Goliath Grouper
That’s a big one. Hard to beat catching a beauty like that, especially in a kayak.
Goliath groupers are true giants of the sea. They can reach lengths of up to 8 feet and weigh anywhere from 400 to over 800 pounds. They have a broad, powerful tail and a massive mouth filled with rows of sharp teeth.
Fishing for Goliath groupers attracts people far and wide due to their massive size and unique looks. Many areas have these beasts protected due to overfishing, but it’s hard to not want to catch one. Fishing grouper from a kayak, though is an adrenaline rush. These massive fish have the strength to manhandle those boats if they want too.
This kayak fisherman is seen hooked into a beast. The fish has his rod bent right over as he pulls it to the surface. The man fights with everything he has and pulls the giant grouper to the surface. Everyone celebrates the insane catch from the small boat but the grouper had other plans. The fish gets burst of energy and break the man’s rod as it takes back off.
What a wild experience.
And still a catch in my books, there’s no way he would have got that thing any closer anyways.
Four Blacktip Reef Sharks Rip Up Stingray In Shallow Ocean Water
I appreciate the video but man was that person so close to carnage.
Stingrays are some of the coolest creatures in the ocean.
They seemingly fly through the water, look like they’re smiling when turned upside down, and have a barbed tail that injects victims with potentially deadly venom (RIP Steve Irwin).
But rays are always out shadowed by the larger, more aggressive species that reins king of the seas: sharks.
Well, a brave beach goer was able to capture footage of what happens when a stingray runs into not one, not two, not even three, but four blacktip reef sharks and, spoiler alert, it didn’t end well.
At first it seems the sting ray is alone, minding its own business near the water’s edge, when out of nowhere the first shark attacks, grabbing a bite of one of the wings and causing some damage. The blood in the water draws in three other sharks and all four go crazy on the poor, helpless ray.
In the end, there’s nothing left but some blood, the entire carcass seemingly gobbled up.
I get that this happened quickly but man the person with the camera didn’t even flinch or take a step back. If that was me, I’d have been getting out of the area in a hurry.
Regardless, as if we didn’t know this already, sharks are not to be messed with. Heck, you shouldn’t even get close enough that they see you, since this stingray didn’t bother them and still ended up a meal.
Goliath Grouper Swallows Up Stingray Caught By Tourist Off South Florida Dock
Confirmed: Goliath groupers are terrifying.
While most sources label them as “gentle giants,” there’s nothing gentle about the videos I’ve seen of them annihilating prey.
We saw one suck down a 4ft long black tip shark off the coast of Bonita Springs, Florida, and now we see one take down a stingray, yes a stingray, in one powerful gulp.
Goliath groupers can grow over 8 feet long and weight upwards of 800 pounds, which really puts them near the top of the food chain. They tend to eat slow moving fish, but when they have the chance, pretty much nothing is off the menu, which this 12-year-old tourist from Scotland found out while fishing in Captiva, Florida.
The girl had hooked a decent-sized stingray (probably on accident) and pulled it up to the surface. That alone is an experience that will last a lifetime, but she wasn’t done seeing nature at its finest.
The group noticed a massive grouper lurking in the shadows, and right when I presume Dad starts explaining to her that is can be over 400 pounds, it shoots to the surface, grabs the stingray in one massive swoop, and slowly takes its meal to deeper waters to digest in privacy.
You’ll also hear them call it a “Jewfish,” which was a name for the fish until 2001 when it was deemed a little insensitive for obvious reasons, and it’s unclear how it ever got that name to begin with.
Truly one of the most impressive displays you’ll see while saltwater fishing and a memory that will be forever burned into the little girl’s mind.
Florida wildlife sure is incredible.
