Good Day in Jupiter, FL

[sturgeon]

With record setting lows throughout the NE USA, I thought seeing some pictures of a few nice fish might help warm up some of you frozen northeasters or anybody else who's diving season is over until warmer weather sets in. These fish were taken yesterday (1/19) freediving in Jupiter, Florida from depths of 60-80 feet. Air temp was mid to upper 70s and water temp was 73.

Take care.

Scott

 

[sturgeon]

Big mutton also taken on 1/19

Here's a pic of a nice 14 lb mutton snapper my friend Jim Fyfe got the same day as the groupers (1/19) but we forgot to get it in the aggregate picture of the days catch. I also forgot to say that the groupers averaged 18 lbs each (gutted).

Scott

 

[rcerdena]

Scott:
nice pics again, you lucky diver! hehehe
Now, more details of the hunting?

Cheers

Roberto

 

[frogman]

Scott,
You and Fabricio look like pirates (check out the big knives)showing off the catch. Nice groupers!

Angelos

 

[Deepdown]

Nice Gags Scott! Looks like they're stack further up north.

 

[Murat]

nice pictures indeed...

By the way, nice posing scott...

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

nice fish...but do you guys really need 4 grouper each? i keep hearing about the decline in grouper population in florida and it just makes me wonder...no doubt youre skilled, but is it really nececssary?

 

[rigdvr]

absolutely...nice work Scott. Shoot the allowable limit when you can, b/c that doesnt happen everyday.

If you were out in the kelp and it was some magical day when big white seabass just kept taunting you by swimming by would you take your limit? If not, kudos to you if so, kudos to you. Within the law is within the law from there it is personal. Just like in the shark thread...I wouldnt take a shark by spear except out of self defense, plus its not legal with most species where I live and there is a bag limit of 1 per boat anyway, but if somewhere else its ok and they decide to all I can say is I wouldnt....

Guaranteed that I show little to no mercy on the wahoo population if this weather ever straightens out

 

[LaJollaFreedvr]

not trying to start an argument at all here but just some things...WSB limit is one because theyve already been practically been fished to extinction in southern california, and its a miracle that theyre even making a small comeback...ive seen many and not shot some because theyre so rare...only if the opportunity is perfect. wahoo are pelagic fish so their numbers are certainly less threatened than sedentary, territorial fish like grouper who live in a relatively smaller area for their whole lives...props to sturgeon for taking his limit...but one of those brutes could feed you for a week or two! i was just concerned about teh fish stocks in florida, because i have heard they are declining and thinking about banning spearing altogether, which would be a terrible thing, because im sure the sportfisherman are doing MUCH more damage collectivly

 

[hawgdawg]

I suggest you take a look at commercial/recreational hook and line catches before you say anything about freedive spearfishing. Freedivers are a vast minority of fish harvesters, and I can guarantee you their impact is minimal compared to hook and line. On top of that, bag limits are imposed according to available data gathered from state biologists. If these limits are outdated, I am sure they will be the first ones to suggest changes. I think you may have a valid concern. However, what you choose to do is your own deal, and you should not criticize other law abiding divers. I happen to know Scott, and of all the divers I have come across, he is the most environmentally concious of all. That doesn't mean he needs to be a tree hugger. Anyway, I don't mean for this note to be confrontational. Just wanted to let you in on a different perspecticve.

Hawgdawg

 

[Bill]

In case any one is interested in another opinion on the controversial subject of limits, here goes.
I don't think it's just a matter of legal versus ethical any more. Appearance is very important. Wouldn't it be far better to show two divers with two good fish and a comment about their favorite recipe? Even a paragraph about the super day or mention of other species taken would convey the message of a skilled hunter.
There are good reasons for taking a limit but, there are more bad reasons and only the diver decides. In our present society, on a public forum, I would like to see pictures that emphasize quality over quantity.
Aloha
Bill

 

[hawgdawg]

Well, in this case, I say just stop posting pics. I personally enjoy seeing all the photos on this site, and probably would never log on if not for the photos. And yes, I love seeing pictures of a lot of fish. The bottom line is that there is no right or wrong. Nobody is breaking the law. For every person that shares your point of view, there are probably many more who completely disagree with you. If you enjoy the pics, then great, check them out. If you don't like them, you don't have to see them. What if there were 2 other people in the pic, would that be ok? Still 8 dead groupers!

Hawgdawg

 

[hawgdawg]

Well, in this case, I say just stop posting pics. I personally enjoy seeing all the photos on this site, and probably would never log on if not for the photos. And yes, I love seeing pictures of a lot of fish. The bottom line is that there is no right or wrong. Nobody is breaking the law. For every person that shares your point of view, there are probably many more who completely disagree with you. If you enjoy the pics, then great, check them out. If you don't like them, you don't have to see them. What if there were 2 other people in the pic, would that be ok? Still 8 dead groupers!

Hawgdawg

 

[sturgeon]

Groupers

Wow, I'm always amazed at how the simplest things I do or say on DB can turn into such a controversial thing. I do love this Forum though because where else can I expose myself to the criticisms of complete strangers over topics they have absolutely no understanding of.

First of all, there were 4 divers that day on my boat who contributed to the catch (you saw 3 of us in the 2 pictures I posted) and no, I do not consider 2 fish/per diver/ per day an excessive catch (neither does FL Game & Fish as this is the limit they have established for Gag & Black grouper on the Atlantic coast of Florida). In the Gulf of Mexico, 5 groupers per day are allowed and so our legal limit over there for the day would have been 20 fish. Would that make you feel any better if we had only gotten eight under those circumstances (less than half of our allowed limit)? Would you consider us conservation minded then? Anyway, gag grouper are not a territorial fish in Florida and in fact are a highly migratory species. They only come here during the winter and only stay for about a month. Tagging studies have shown these fish travel from as far north as North Carolina to as far south as the southern tip of Florida and even into the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, my buddy Fabricio (in the pic with me) shot a tagged gag last month that Mote Marine Lab said was tagged in Cape Canaveral which is over 200 miles north of here.

For those who enjoyed my pics, that's great and for those who didn't, like Hawgdawg said, next time simply don't look.

Scott

 

[Bill]

..."I do not consider 2 fish/per diver/ per day an excessive catch (neither does FL Game & Fish as this is the limit they have established for Gag & Black grouper on the Atlantic coast of Florida)."...

Nor do I but, a picture of four happy divers holding up a fish (similar to pic #2) is far better than slabs of meat in the bottom of the boat and may be more acceptable to 95% of the world, especially on a public forum.
Here in Hawaii, as in many other places, we are fighting a seemingly losing battle to retain any spearfishing privileges. I didn't suggest that you not shoot the fish, only for a slight change in photography to deny our enemies some ammunition and to not piss off those that are still neutral.
Aloha
Bill

 

[rigdvr]

...This is so true but the average Joe on the street doesnt care. All they see is us holding a stringer of fish while they eat 1 fillet at Red Lobster. They cant put 2 and 2 together that the boat that produced that fillet is raping the seas...its only one fillet. Meanwhile Im holding a stringer of 20 fish, thats 40 fillets. Its like political ads, whens the last one youve seen that ever really made a statement? People dont care about reality and are easily swayed, thats what were up against...thats my quote from the spearing comp page...sounds familiar


For some reason I find myself on the other side of the fence on this one as I didnt think the amount of fish was excessive. As for the wahoo, they really dont know how to manage the stock or its current status for that matter, they just dont know. We have charter boats this time of year throwing 10-15 fat spawning wahoo on the dock and guess what...theres no limit. Palegics can be overfished just as easily as grouper despite what some believe. Just check status of bluefin tuna stocks, mako sharks, swordfish and white marlin.

Heres something to fire yall up...an old pic but 2 divers, one great day...excessive?

 

[cdavis]

Hi Sturgeon,

Great catch, real pretty fish. I get a real charge out of your pics. Don't let anybody discourage you from posting, but if you put yourself in harms way, expect somebody to raise cain. There might even be some good thoughts in with the complaints
Your point about migratory gags is partly right but not entirely. Gags can be both, but the resident populations that would be available to divers and most hook and liners were obliterated so many years ago that most people don't remember. I dove on and/or knew about several spots in the northern and central Gulf of Mexico which held dense populations of gags for years. The fish were there all year round and only disappeared (into a cooler) when the spot became known. Once they were gone, they stayed gone. One spot was off Tallahassee in less than twenty feet of water, close enough to the beach to see people if you had binoculars. It was pieces of the remains of an old shrimp boat and held what must have been a hundred gags 10 to 40 pounds. Think about seeing a 40 pounder in that depth. The finder of the spot let me dive it once. I sat on the bottom in 12 ft vis with at least 20 big gags in sight, jostling each other to get a look at me, amazing. Realy interesting that there were absolutely none of the small grouper that normally would have been there. We had lots of rock piles off Bayport that held good size populations of resident gags. I learned very quickly to only take a few each visit. These places were good for years as long as we did not hammer'm too hard. The residents appeared to be replenished every winter, maybe by migratory fish. If a spot was completely cleaned out, the number and size of new fish was much less.

I suspect (ain't speculation great) that the original residents on your reefs were primarily black grouper, who might have kept the gags migratory.

Shot one for me next week

Connor.

 

[hawgdawg]

Bill,
I see your point. You are absolutely correct when you say spearfishing has gotten a bad reputation, However, I have to disagree that it is because of photos such as Sturgeon's. I see many more of these types of photos where the person is holding a fishing rod, not a gun. Yourself being from Hawaii should know that well. It is my understanding that many billfish are killed every year in hawaii by recreational anglers. I really appreciate your concern. I also do not want spearfishing banned. But to go as far as saying that pictures like Sturgeons are the reason for it is in my opinion very innacurate. If spearfishing is ever outlawed, it will be from the lack of lobbyists. You seemed like an environmentally concious person, who perhaps could lobby for us in a fruitful manner. I think this is my last post on this topic. Regards,

Hawgdawg