By Richard Rosser
The State of Florida Fish & Wildlife Commission has voted to allow significantly restricted harvesting of Goliath Grouper. A lottery will be held to award 200 licenses to harvest the fish within a size range of 24″ to 36″. Anglers will pay $10 to enter the lottery and then another $150 for the permit . . . then they need to actually catch one of that size.
Harvesting of the species was outlawed over 30 years due to overfishing, particularly from divers who could access the massive, fearless creatures prized for sometimes hundreds of pounds of meat. The ruling protects the young and trophy-sized members of the species to allow for continued success of this fabled member of Florida marine habitat.
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