Grouper

Broiled Grouper Parmesan

2 pounds grouper fillets
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter, room temperature
3 green onions, chopped
thinly sliced lemon and parsley for garnish, optional

Place fillets in a single layer on a greased baking dish or broiler
pan; brush with lemon juice.

Combine Parmesan cheese, mayonnaise, salt, butter, and green onions in
a small bowl; set aside.

Broil flounder fillets 4 to 6 minutes, or until fish flakes easily
with a fork. Remove from oven; spread with cheese
mixture.

Broil about 30 seconds longer, or until cheese is lightly browned and bubbly.

Garnish with sliced lemon and parsley if desired.

Serves 6 to 8.

You order an expensive meal of fresh grouper at your local restaurant or choose a gorgeous salmon from the market. Did you get what you ordered or a something else?

Americans have been shocked recently to learn that in many cases, meals at even top quality restaurants may contain counterfeit seafood.

David Price, a Ph.D. researcher from Florida State University, reported to the Georgia Senate Government Oversight Committee in November of 2007 on mislabeled fish. The expert found that DNA-tested grouper he purchased from Georgia restaurants turned out to be other species of fish over 50% of the time.

Read more on
seafood substitution.

NOAA Fisheries Service is Seeking Comments on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Gulf of Mexico Grouper Fishery.

NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries Service) requests comments from the public on the DEIS developed to analyze the impacts of proposed grouper management actions, including measures to end overfishing of gag. The Environmental Protection Agency announced the availability of the DEIS on August 8, 2008 (73 FR 46269).

Red grouper and gag are both in the Gulf of Mexico shallow-water grouper fishery. Recent assessments of these two species indicate changes in stock status. The red grouper stock has recovered and is no longer considered overfished or undergoing overfishing. Gag were found to be undergoing overfishing, but were not overfished. As a result, changes in management measures are needed. Because management measures affecting one species invariably affect the other, this action examines both red grouper and gag management measures within the shallow-water grouper fishery. In addition, this action also examines compliance requirements for operators of federally permitted reef fish vessels when fishing in state waters to further reduce overfishing of reef fish stocks.

The primary purpose of the DEIS developed by NOAA Fisheries Service in cooperation with the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council (Council) is to evaluate the effects of a range of alternatives for grouper regulatory actions including: 1) Management targets and thresholds for gag consistent with the requirements of the Sustainable Fisheries Act; 2) gag and red grouper total allowable catch; 3) interim allocations for the commercial and recreational gag and red grouper fisheries; 4) annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability measures for the commercial and recreational gag and red grouper fisheries; 5) commercial quotas and quota management for gag, red grouper, and shallow-water grouper; 6) measures to reduce grouper discard mortality in the reef fish fishery; 7) recreational measures to manage the grouper fishery consistent with proposed ACLs; 8) seasonal area closures to protect gag spawning aggregations; and 9) measures to improve federal regulatory compliance.

The regulatory measures evaluated in this DEIS may be implemented through a final rule for Amendment 30B to the Council's Fishery Management Plan for Reef Fish Resources of the Gulf of Mexico. An interim rule for gag measures may also be needed to end gag overfishing if a final rule from Amendment 30B is not implemented prior to January 1, 2009. This interim rule was requested by the Council.

Request for Comments

Written comments on this proposed rule must be received no later than 5 p.m., Eastern time, on September 22, 2008, to be considered by NOAA Fisheries Service. See the Addresses section for information on where and how to submit comments.

Copies of the DEIS are available on the Council's Web site at http://www.gulfcouncil.org, the e-Rulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov /www.regulations.gov/> , or in printed form by contacting Peter Hood (address below).

Sustainable Fisheries Division
Southeast Regional Office
NOAA Fisheries Service
263 13th Avenue South
St. Petersburg, Florida 33701-5505

You may submit written comments by any of the following methods:

Electronic submissions: Federal e-Rulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. All comments received are a part of the public record and will be posted to www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying information (for example, name, address, etc.) voluntarily submitted by the commenter may be publicly accessible. Do not submit confidential business information or otherwise sensitive or protected information. NOAA Fisheries Service will accept anonymous comments (enter N/A in the required fields, if you wish to remain anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word, Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF file formats only.

Fax: (727) 824-5308

Mail: Peter Hood at address above

source: Gulf Council press release

NOAA Fisheries is continuing the implementation of new management measures for the commercial and recreational reef fish fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. In October 2007, NOAA Fisheries proposed new requirements for fishermen to use non-stainless steel circle hooks when fishing with natural baits, and to have a dehooking device and a venting tool onboard their vessel. A venting tool is necessary to deflate the swim bladders of reef fish that fishermen intend to release. A venting tool is a sharpened, hollow instrument, such as a hypodermic needle or a 16-gauge needle fixed to a hollow wooden dowel. Use of a tool such as a knife or an ice-pick would not be permissible. For best results, the venting tool should be inserted into the fish at a 45-degree angle approximately 1 to 2 inches behind the base of the pectoral fin. The tool should be inserted just deep enough to release the gases, so that the fish may be released with minimum damage.

For additional information, please contact Michael Bailey (727) 551-5743 or Michael.Bailey@noaa.gov.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council has voted to send Reef Fish Amendment 30B, which deals with gag and red grouper, to the Secretary of Commerce for approval and implementation. The Amendment addresses the overfishing status of gag and the recovered status of red grouper in the Gulf of Mexico, and is expected to become effective in late 2009 or early 2010.

In the meantime, the Council requested that NOAA Fisheries implement an interim rule to implement those portions of Amendment 30B that pertain to ending overfishing of gag, red snapper, greater amberjack and gray triggerfish as quickly as possible. The interim rule, which can only be used to address those provisions that deal specifically with overfishing, is expected to become effective by January 1, 2009, and will put in place temporary regulations until Amendment 30B can be fully implemented.

The interim rule will:

* Set the recreational gag bag and possession limit tot 2 per person, per day. The aggregate bag limit will remain at five.

* Extend the recreational closed season for gag from February 1 through March 31. The closed season for black and red grouper will remain February 15 to March 15.

* Charter boat and headboat operators who possess a Gulf reef fish permit must comply with Federal regulations those reef fish species experiencing overfishing (gag, red snapper, greateramberjack, and gray triggerfish) regardless of where the fish are harvested, if those regulations are more restrictive than state regulations.

The interim rule will eventually be replaced by Amendment 30B, which establishes a recreational grouper aggregate of 4 fish with a 2 gag and 2 red grouper bag and possession limit. It also includes a recreational closed season for all shallow-water grouper from February 1, through March 31. Additionally, charter and headboat operators who possess a Gulf reef fish permit must comply with Federal regulations when more restrictive than state regulations, for those reef fish species experiencing overfishing (gag, red snapper, greater amberjack, and gray triggerfish), regardless of where the fish are harvested.

On the commercial side, Amendment 30B reduces the minimum size limit for commercial red grouper to 18" and repeals the commercial February 15 to March 15 closed season on gag, black grouper and red grouper. Instead, a January through April seasonal area closure is established at the Edges 40 fathom contour, a 390 nautical square mile gag spawning region northwest of Steamboat Lumps for both the commercial and recreational sectors.

Amendment 30B also sets total allowable catch (TAC) for both gag and red grouper. The gag TAC will be set at variable levels - 3.38 mp in 2009, 3.62 mp in 2010, and 3.82 mp in 2011, with the red grouper TAC set at 7.57 mp. Interim allocation of TAC between the recreational and commercial fisheries will be set at 61% recreational and 39% commercial for gag, and 24% recreational, 76% commercial for red grouper.

Finally, the amendment sets annual catch limits (ACLs) and accountability measures (AMs) for recreational and commercial gag and red grouper, and for the commercial shallow-water grouper aggregate. For the commercial sector this means the shallow-water grouper fishery will close when gag, red grouper, or the sallow-water grouper (SWG) quota is met. For the recreational sector, if at the end of the fishing year it is determined that the gag or red grouper annual catch limit (ACL) has been exceeded, then any scheduled increase in the recreational allocation will be canceled. In addition, the recreational fishing season for SWG in the following year will be reduced by the amount necessary to ensure that red grouper or gag target levels are not exceeded for that year.

The regulations are necessary because the latest stock assessment completed under the Southeast Data, Assessment and Review (SEDAR) program, indicates that gag are undergoing overfishing. The Magnuson-Stevens Reauthorization Act of 2006 mandates that once a stock is determined to be experiencing overfishing, the Council must take action to end overfishing immediately.

The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council is one of eight regional fishery management councils established by the Magnuson%u2011Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1976. The Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council prepares fishery management plans designed to manage fishery resources in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.

Deepwater Grouper and Tilefish Fisheries to Reopen in November

NOAA Fisheries will reopen the commercial fishery for deepwater grouper (misty grouper, snowy grouper, yellowedge grouper, warsaw grouper, and speckled hind) and tilefishes in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Gulf of Mexico for 10 days, beginning November 1, 2008. The agency had previously determined that quotas for these commercial fisheries would be reached by May 10, 2008; however, the latest estimates for deepwater grouper and tilefish landings indicate the quotas were not reached by that date. Consequently, these fisheries will reopen effective 12:01 a.m., local time, November 1, 2008, until 12:01 a.m., local time, on November 11, 2008. The fisheries will then be closed until January 1, 2009.

For more information, contact Susan.Gerhart@noaa.gov.

source: NOAA Fish News

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Snowy Grouper

Snowy groupers inhabit deeper waters than most other groupers. These fish are sometimes caught by longliners pursuing tilefish. Like most members of the grouper family, this fish is excellent tasting with white flaky meat.

Marbled Grouper

Marbled Grouper usually weigh from 5-25 lbs. In spite of its somewhat different appearance than other groupers, this is an excellent table fish, comparable with other groupers of its size.

coming soon.....more American grouper species.