Shark & Big Game Fishing | Emerald Coast Experts

Blacktip Shark

Blacktips are one of our most common sharks, usually 5-6 feet long and around 100-150 pounds. You'll find them in shallow coastal waters, often right off the beach or near inlets. They're most active in warmer months, especially summer. These sharks are known for their acrobatic jumps and hard fights - hook one and you're in for some exciting action. Anglers love targeting blacktips because they're abundant and put up a great battle on light tackle. To catch 'em, try drifting live bait like mullet or blue runners near sandbars or drop-offs. Here's a local trick: watch for birds diving on bait schools, that's often where blacktips are feeding. Use medium-heavy spinning gear with 30-50 pound braid for the best combination of casting distance and fighting power. Remember to handle these sharks carefully for a quick release.

Bull Shark

Bull sharks are the bruisers of our local waters, growing up to 11 feet and 500 pounds. You'll find them in shallow coastal areas, bays, and even up rivers. They're active year-round but really fired up in summer. These sharks are known for their aggression and raw power - hook into one and you're in for a serious fight. Anglers target bulls for the pure adrenaline rush of battling such a powerful predator. To catch 'em, use heavy tackle with wire leaders and large circle hooks. Fresh cut bait like mullet or jack crevalle works great. Here's a local tip: look for bulls around river mouths and passes, especially on incoming tides when they're hunting. Chum heavily to draw them in, then be ready for a explosive strike. Just remember, these are big, potentially dangerous sharks, so we always handle them with extreme caution and respect.

Dusky Shark

Dusky Shark (Carcharhinus obscurus) Fish Description

Also known as brown shark, bronze whaler, common whaler, shovelnose, bay shark, and river whaler, the Dusky Shark is an endangered species of requiem sharks. 

The most distinct feature of dusky sharks is their round snouts. They have slender bodies and long sickle-shaped pectoral fins. Their first dorsal fins have slopes. They possess interdorsal ridges on their backs. Their color is usually blue-gray to dark-gray on the dorsal side and white on the ventral side. The Dusky Sharks have triangular saw-edged upper teeth.

Dusky Shark Diet

Dusty Sharks have a wide variety of choices for their diet. They particularly love cephalopods, bony fishes (like bluefish), rays, and fellow sharks. They also feast on sea turtles, crustaceans, marine mammals, and even carrion and garbage. Also part of the Dusky Sharks’ favorites is the pelagic fishes like tuna, mackerel, herring, anchovies, and flying fish, among others.

Dusky Shark Size

Dusty Sharks can grow up to 14 feet or 148 inches and weigh up to 765 pounds. This requiem shark is one of the largest in its family. Female Dusky Sharks are generally larger than the males; the former can measure up to 11.8 feet while the latter, 11.1 feet.

Interesting Facts About the Dusky Shark 

• Dusky Sharks reach adulthood at around 20 years old, making them one of the slowest-growing and/or latest-maturing sharks. They may live up to 50 years.
• They live a nomadic and migratory lifestyle. Female Dusky Sharks are capable of storing sperm for a long time since they rarely encounter potential mates.
• Dusky Sharks are considered dangerous to humans due to their huge size.
• They can eat as much as one-tenth of their total weight in one sitting.
• The International Shark Attack File attributed six attacks on people and boats to the Dusky Sharks; one of them was fatal and three were unprovoked.

Dusky Shark — Fishing Techniques

Dusky Sharks are popular in the shark fin trade. Their prized fins are large and boast several internal rays, making them one of the most-sought after shark species. They are also fished for their meat which is made into leather and processed for vitamins (liver oil). Recreational anglers love Dusky Sharks because catching such a large target is a huge feat. Dusky Sharks used to be part of the shark-fishing tournaments.

Anglers capture Dusky Sharks via bycatch on longlines, nets and trawls usually meant for swordfish and tuna. They often have a high mortality rate when caught. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has branded Dusky Sharks as Endangered worldwide since their population has been steadily collapsing over the decade.

Dusky Shark Habitat and Distribution

Dusky Sharks thrive in warm-temperate and tropical continental seas globally with temperatures ranging from 66 to 82°F. They can be found from the coast to the outer continental shelf up to the adjacent pelagic waters as deep as 1,300 feet. Dusky Sharks share the oceanic waters with their cousins: the inshore sandbar sharks and the pelagic silky sharks.

They abound the waters from the western and central Mediterranean Sea to the Canary Islands, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and even in Spain, Portugal, Madeira, and Morocco. They are also sometimes sighted on the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, and even the Red Sea. They can also be found in the Pacific Ocean as well as countries like Vietnam, China, Taiwan, Japan, and Australia.

Goliath Grouper

Goliath Grouper

Fish Description

As the name implies, this is a gigantic species of Grouper. As the biggest Grouper in the western Atlantic, they are stocky in shape, have tiny eyes and broadheads. Their pectoral and tail fins are connected along the back. They can live in brackish water and tolerate low oxygen levels.

They can grow to 8 feet in length and weigh up to 800 pounds. 

Atlantic Goliath Grouper vs. Pacific Goliath Grouper

At one time, it was thought the Atlantic and Pacific Goliath Groupers were the same species, and centuries ago, they were the same species. They are now considered sister species. There are a few distinguishing marks between the two. The Pacific Goliath Grouper has primarily dark grey coloration, which is punctuated by small, white spots and blotches, and many times yellow accenting their fins. The Atlantic Goliath Grouper is mottled tan and grey. The Atlantic Grouper is also larger than the Pacific species.

Interesting Fish Facts

 Adult Goliath Groupers gather together in spawning groups as soon as they prepared to mate. The groups vary in size, number, and location. Once they are together, the females lay eggs. Once the males fertilize the eggs, they rise to the surface of the water. The eggs then drift with the ocean currents for about 40 to 60 days, reaching the nursery areas as the baby groupers hatch out. These tiny groupers swim to the bottom of the ocean and hide in sea mangroves and grasses until they grow larger. 

They may experience a sex reversal with age. All young groupers are female, but as they grow older, some become male. Only small percentages remain out of maturity long enough to become males, thus ensuring that most groupers are egg-laying females. 

In addition to its potentially large size, an extra defense that some Groupers have is the ability to change their skin color. At times the color change is as simple as changing from dark to light to mix in with different light levels. Other Groupers have developed colorful patterns consisting of stripes, blotches, or spots that help them blend with the ocean floor and reef bottom.

Goliath Groupers are known to live 35 years, but now some scientists estimate the lifespan for these mammoth fish is 50 - 100 years.

Divers beware! These groupers are known to stalk divers.

Habitat & Distribution

Juveniles live and survive in canals, brackish estuaries, and mangrove swamps. When they mature, they move to shallow, tropical waters among coral or artificial reefs. Notably, they are one of the few groupers found in brackish water. 

Goliath Grouper are loners. There are limited home ranges; these fish can be alone. They are primarily found in shallow, tropical waters in man-made and natural structures especially coral reefs. In the eastern Atlantic Ocean, they navigate yearly to a spawning area for breeding; the location and season vary according to the population.

The Goliath Grouper's population is concentrated in the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Keys. Occasionally, they are found as far north as New England on the coast of Massachusetts and Maine.

They are also found in the Caribbean and parts of South America. 

Bait and Lures

Goliath Groupers feed on sea turtles and crustaceans, mostly crabs. Other slow-moving fish such as burrfish, catfish, toadfish, and octopus will be found in their diet. These would be good fish to use as bait along with ladyfish and crevalle jack. Lures would be unsuccessful with these huge fish. 

Fishing Techniques - How to Catch Goliath Grouper

The rod and reel you use need to be strong and extra-heavy since these fish are known to break gear. Goliath Grouper puts up an intense but usually short-lived fight. That first pull will be enough to pull you right off the boat if you are not careful, so be prepared. You will want a very heavy rod.

Considering the shallow water depth and size of this fish, we suggest a 50-80 wide reel. It should be sufficient to accommodate the 400 - 600 pound monofilament fishing line you will need. And as these fish live near rocks, reefs, and structures, you will need a line with some stretch. A 600-pound test monofilament fishing line is abrasion-resistant and will give you what you need. We also recommend a 20/O circle hook, big enough to get around the massive jaws of this fish. 

The key to Grouper fishing is anchoring close enough to the reef so you can get the fish will come out to take the bait, but also distant enough to have a chance to pull them away from the reef before they try to get back and break you off. One important tip when fishing is to bounce the bait off the bottom to create some commotion. They have no predators, and they are not shy. 

Is Goliath Grouper Good to Eat?

Goliath Grouper is known for its unique taste, which is unlike any other fish you’ve ever tried. It has a delicate white flesh that is mild, yet subtly sweet, making it a versatile ingredient that can be used in various recipes. The flavor profile of Goliath Grouper is exceptional, and it can easily soak up whatever seasoning or cooking techniques you choose to use, allowing you to create a dish that is personalized to your liking. Whether you prefer it grilled or baked, this fish will leave your taste buds longing for more. Its distinct flavor and texture make it a popular choice for seafood lovers who want to explore different tastes and experiences. So next time you’re looking for something different and exciting to try, consider the Goliath Grouper, and get ready to be pleasantly surprised!

Goliath Grouper Population

A dangerous combination of factors going against the Goliath is that they are sluggish fish that are slow to grow and reproduce. Secondly, considering their large size, they are found in relatively shallow waters of around 150 feet. These are a dangerous combination.  They have experienced an estimated 80% population reduction because of overfishing. Because of this, all harvest of Goliath Groupers is forbidden by law. 

Remember, these amazing fish are protected, and we all should be doing our part. Adhere to the rules of catch and release and leave these fish unharmed.

World Record

The world record for a hook-and-line caught Goliath Grouper is 680 pounds caught off Fernandina Beach, Florida, in 1961.

Scalloped Hammerhead

Scalloped Hammerhead (Sphyrna lewini ) Fish Description

Also known as southern hammerhead, kidney-headed shark, and bronze hammerhead, the Scalloped Hammerhead is a species of the Sphyrnidae family of hammerhead sharks. They are the sister species of the Carolina hammerhead (Sphyrna gilberti); they differ in terms of their number of vertebrae.

The Scalloped Hammerhead stands out due to the ‘hammer’ on its head. It is a fairly large species of hammerhead sharks but smaller than the smooth hammerheads. Their bodies are greyish brown or light grey in color, fading to white below.

Diet

They have a very high metabolic rate so they need a lot of food. They generally feast on herring, mackerel, and sardines. They also feed on cephalopods like octopus and squid. Scalloped Hammerheads may also eat smaller species of sharks like the blacktip reef shark. 

Their widely spaced eyes and nostrils (on top of their special senses) play a huge part in the capture of their prey. Additionally, their wide heads enable them to sense more accurately their victims, including those buried in the sand.

Size

Female Scalloped Hammerheads are generally larger than the males. The females can grow up to 98.4 inches and weigh 180 pounds, whereas the males measure only up to 70.8 inches and weigh 60 pounds.

Interesting Facts 

• The Scalloped Hammerhead sharks can navigate the ocean with their homing device-like ability. They move during nighttime and use their surroundings as a map.
• Due to the shape of their heads, they can bury their heads into the sand and pin stingrays down. They possess special sensory cells that allow them to detect their prey using the electric fields that their victims give off.
• Sadly, the population of Scalloped Hammerheads has declined by 95% over the last three decades due to overfishing and the high demand for their shark fins and livers (for oil).
• They are so shy to the point that it is hard for scientists to study them; they pose minimal danger toward people despite having been accused of attacking some people before.

Scalloped Hammerhead — Fishing Techniques

The Scalloped Hammerheads are considered Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List; thus, they currently enjoy protected status. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has suggested that anglers all over the world stop fishing this species. The decline in the population of this species is primarily attributed to bycatch and overfishing.

Habitat and Distribution

These sharks thrive in tropical coastal waters as deep as 1,600 feet all over the world. Since they are a coastal pelagic species of fish, they live in insular and continental shelves and deep areas of the ocean. During the day, the Scalloped Hammerhead swim close to the shore; at night, they hunt offshore. They used to travel in large schools but this made them vulnerable to target fishing; these days, they can be seen in pairs, in small schools, or alone.

The juveniles inhabit shallow coastal areas like mangroves and bays, sheltering them from predators. After around three years, the juvenile hammerheads would return to pelagic areas to feed.

They are located from New Jersey to Brazil including the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. They are also sighted in the Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, the Indian Ocean, and the eastern Pacific. They also swim in the waters of Ecuador, Peru, Japan, and Australia.