are also very easy to approach, proba- bly because adult fish only have sharks and man as natural predators. As a result, they are extremely vulnerable to anglers and to divers using powerhead spearguns, a predicament that con- tributed to their previous decline.
TIME FOR TAKE? Goliath grouper are ambush preda-
tors that hide in or near structure. When slow-moving prey swim by, they open their large mouths and the pres-
sure change allows them suck in cat- fish, burrfish, lobsters, stingrays and even small turtles. They will also rou- tinely inhale small baits like glass min- nows. Collins says goliaths don’t hunt, preferring to let food come to them, but they are opportunistic if they see an easy target like a struggling hooked snapper. “They’ll eat if it’s there,” she says.
“But there’s no evidence that they eat snapper or grouper on their own, unless it’s on a hook. Goliaths and other reef species have been co-existing
If you dive, the goliaths just sit
there so it would be easy to clean out a spot.
22
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