Goliath grouper can grow to about 8 feet and can weigh nearly 800 pounds, and they are known to eat whatever opportunity presents — smaller fish, crustaceans, octopus, sea turtles — and judging from this video, the occasional shark.
Prey is ambushed, caught with a quick rush and snap of the jaws. The grouper’s sharp teeth are adapted for seizing prey and preventing escape, although most prey is simply engulfed and swallowed whole.
A recent video getting a lot of hits on YouTube shows a 4-foot black tip shark hooked and being reeled in by anglers off the coast of Bonita Springs, Fla.
The fishermen are clearly excited to reel the small predator in close to the boat. Then, in a flash, it was gone, apparently devoured by a massive grouper with a big appetite.
We took the liberty of adding a slow-motion replay to give you a better look at an unusual fish tale.
“From all available data, goliath grouper do not eat sharks,” marine biologist Matthew Craig told National Geographic. “That said, groupers in general are opportunistic feeders. If there is something that is an ‘easy’ meal that can fit in their mouths, they will go after it.”
