# Jew FIsh Galveston Ship Channel



## CAPSIZED (Aug 10, 2004)

Yes it was released. Caught today in ship channel. Hopefully they are making a comeback.:brew:


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## pelochas (Jun 15, 2005)

in the Ship Channel!? congrats on the catch


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## SpeckReds (Sep 10, 2005)

Caught a fish that looked like that one about the size of your hand at jetties on Monday a week ago. Released it.


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## SurfRunner (May 22, 2004)

Nice catch! I think they are there more than we know. Not like the old days, but they are there.

I know these guys that were snorkeling the Surfside jetties about 5 years. They told me they saw a big grouper and a ton of snook. They told me know one was catching them simply because no one's bait was in their area.


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## saltwatersensations (Aug 30, 2004)

Cool. How big was it?


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## Paul Marx (Nov 13, 2009)

I had a friend that wanted to catch something big . He caught some sand trout and went out to the first set of rigs . He was young and had a big offshore rod of his dad's . He dropped a bait down beside the rig leg but didn't tie off . He was drifting away from the rig and got maybe 50 yards away when something grabbed the bait and just slowly swam back to the rig and broke off . He said he cranked the drag down and thought the rod was going to come out of his hands .


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## CAPSIZED (Aug 10, 2004)

12"-15" long



saltwatersensations said:


> Cool. How big was it?


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## crashboatbasin (May 21, 2009)

Sweet !! Are they endangered ???


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## Fish-a-mon (May 21, 2004)

crashboatbasin said:


> Sweet !! Are they endangered ???


Illegal to retain. I was thinking that the bridge that connects seawolf would be a place big Jew fish would hang out. Next to the pilons


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## capt mullet (Nov 15, 2008)

there is no shortage of jewfish anymore. they are a serious nuisance in Florida and should be allowed to be retained for consumption.


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## bigmike2121 (May 20, 2012)

Florida has HUGE ones! saw Jose Wejebe catching them once. Hook em with a big reel and back boat up with outboard to get them out of pilings!!! Awesome!


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## SurfRunner (May 22, 2004)

There used to be some huge ones at the Galveston Jetties years ago. My uncle told me some old salts used to hand line them out of a skiff and ride em out when they had one on.


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## RB II (Feb 26, 2009)

I have an old pic of my wifes uncle standing next to one hanging about 5' long, reported to have weighed 550 lbs. Caught on a ski rope and a stingray at the Galveston Jetties back in the '60s or so. Said he tied the rope to a boat cleat and pulled it out of the rocks.


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## Law Dog (Jul 27, 2010)

Galveston Ship Channel? Awesone, Congrats on the catch !!


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## Arlon (Feb 8, 2005)

Nice to see some stuff like that actually coming back. Kind of surprises me considering the fishing pressure these days.


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## 69Scout (Aug 12, 2011)

I believe you have a Gag Grouper and not a Jewfish/Goliath. Either way Gag Grouper are really tasty. The minimum is 22".


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## Blk Jck 224 (Oct 16, 2009)

capt mullet said:


> there is no shortage of jewfish anymore. they are a serious nuisance in Florida and should be allowed to be retained for consumption.


The christianfish will keep them in check here in Galveston!


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## James Howell (May 21, 2004)

No, that's definitely a juvenile goliath (jewfish). Cool catch.


69Scout said:


> I believe you have a Gag Grouper and not a Jewfish/Goliath. Either way Gag Grouper are really tasty. The minimum is 22".


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

There's snapper out there too.


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## CAPSIZED (Aug 10, 2004)

Yes. The other thing we are catching a lot of this year are Mangrove Snapper. Most of them are small but we catch a few every trip. I think the mild winter we had last year helped with that.



Arlon said:


> Nice to see some stuff like that actually coming back. Kind of surprises me considering the fishing pressure these days.


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## Dgeddings (Sep 16, 2010)

capt mullet said:


> there is no shortage of jewfish anymore. they are a serious nuisance in Florida and should be allowed to be retained for consumption.


i was catching red grouper and yellowtail snapper out of islamorada a couple months ago and kept having one steal my fish, their there thick and their BIG, one I kept hooking into was well over 200lbs biggest gear we had on the boat was a 20w penn and it didnt have enough drag to get it to the boat


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## caldvn (Sep 25, 2009)

Mont said:


> There's snapper out there too.


x2, my wife's client caught one around 13" about 3 weeks ago.


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## mullethead00 (May 31, 2010)

Blk Jck 224 said:


> The christianfish will keep them in check here in Galveston!


funny. wrong...but funny.


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## Dino777 (Apr 11, 2012)

Paul Marx said:


> I had a friend that wanted to catch something big . He caught some sand trout and went out to the first set of rigs . He was young and had a big offshore rod of his dad's . He dropped a bait down beside the rig leg but didn't tie off . He was drifting away from the rig and got maybe 50 yards away when something grabbed the bait and just slowly swam back to the rig and broke off . He said he cranked the drag down and thought the rod was going to come out of his hands .


How does this have anything to do with the guy posting on catching a jew fish????????


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## McDaniel8402 (Dec 7, 2011)

Oh man, I've been waiting for a chance to post this. lmao


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## Miles2Fish (Dec 2, 2008)

*I'm not so sure.....*

I'm not sure that is a Goliath grouper. I have caught dozens in the keys and around Florida and never seen one with that color pattern or fins that weren't very round. Look at the pectoral fins of this fish compared to the fish at the beginning of this thread.


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## Tortuga (May 21, 2004)

Back in 'olden times' saw a lot of big jewfish caught off the rocks at the Port Aransas Jetties... The one in the pix below was caught in 1957.. a little over 500 pounds I believe

Used to see old fishermen work the big ones all day long until they finally hauled them up on the rocks... 500 pounds at 50 cents a pound..nice money in those days. Restaurants all along the coast sold them as trout, redfish...whatever....:wink:


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## ComeFrom? (May 21, 2004)

Tortuga said:


> Back in 'olden times' saw a lot of big jewfish caught off the rocks at the Port Aransas Jetties... The one in the pix below was caught in 1957.. a little over 500 pounds I believe
> 
> Used to see old fishermen work the big ones all day long until they finally hauled them up on the rocks... 500 pounds at 50 cents a pound..nice money in those days. Restaurants all along the coast sold them as trout, redfish...whatever....:wink:


Tortuga, that is one fantastic picture. I had several of Tarpon caught off Caldwell Pier. Do you have any others? PM me. TIA! CF?


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## Redfishr (Jul 26, 2004)

The world Record Jewfish was once held off the the south jetty.
Along with the world record sawfish.
They may still stand today.


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## Tortuga (May 21, 2004)

Redfishr said:


> The world Record Jewfish was once held off the the south jetty.
> Along with the world record sawfish.
> They may still stand today.


You're right, Red.. Gus Papadakis (sp?)...he held quite a few world records all off the Galveston jettys...

Check out this catch below...down at Corpus Christi.. Don't know when. The guys I watched catching them years ago down at Port A didn't use rods and reels.. Used hand-lines...best I can remember they were about one-half inch ropes...with a hook the size of yore foot.. LOL.. They would brace themselves sitting down in the rocks and haul them in hand over hand...might take them hours to finally get one up on the rocks...but they were selling them and it was time well spent...LOL

Reading up a little on them...and it says the jewfish can go as much as 800 pounds.....Whew !!!:wink:

"Lloyd Logmire with a Corpus Christi ,Texas 594 lb Jewfish"


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## wickedwader (Jun 30, 2010)

Miles2Fish said:


> I'm not sure that is a Goliath grouper. I have caught dozens in the keys and around Florida and never seen one with that color pattern or fins that weren't very round. Look at the pectoral fins of this fish compared to the fish at the beginning of this thread.


I tend to agree...I'm not convinced it's a Goliath but I can't figure out what other type of grouper it may be. Looks kind of like a cross between a Goliath and a Nassau.


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## BMFO (Sep 28, 2011)

My uncle caught a Goliath some 30 years ago in his shrimp nets out near freeport, it was 500+ they donated the fish to a children's shelter/group home. I'm goin to try and locate the pic of them back at the doc and post, thanks for the memory.
B


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## fishguru00 (Aug 10, 2011)

black or gag grouper...


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## Brian Castille (May 27, 2004)

To me, the colors aren't the same as the Jewfish we've seen and caught in Florida. However, the water is much, much clearer in Florida and it has to have some influence on the colors. Not every fish has the exact same color patterns and I think the color patterns of this fish look close to every other picture I have seen of Jewfish.

About 10 years ago at the Galveston South Jetty, some friends and I were fishing for bull reds. One of the big rods doubles over and friend number 1 starts fighting it - he isn't making any headway and the fish just slowly starts heading SE. For the next 45 minutes we all take turns fighting it and we never turn the fish, it never made a fast run and never sat on the bottom. Finally after being drug for 1/2 a mile the line broke when we tightened the drag all the way to see if that would do anything. We've caught big sharks, stingrays as wide as the boat and other big fish and I don't think it was a shark, ray, drum, red, jack, etc. We thought maybe it was a small submarine, lol. Maybe it really was a Jewfish???????

You wouldn't think they would have just disappeared. They have to still be out there......


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## CAPSIZED (Aug 10, 2004)

Its a jewfish based on the number of dorsal spines and shape of its tail. Not all fish have the same colors. I saw a green trout on here a few days ago. lol



wickedwader said:


> I tend to agree...I'm not convinced it's a Goliath but I can't figure out what other type of grouper it may be. Looks kind of like a cross between a Goliath and a Nassau.


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## Croaker slinger (Feb 10, 2011)

Here is a pic of the Jewfish my uncle caught during the Freeport Fishing Fiesta, can't remember what year, He passed away about 10 years ago.


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## Mont (Nov 17, 1998)

Back in the late '70's, there were quite a few of them that called the VA Fogg home. They were so docile, you could pet them, while diving. They are also quite curios fish. I kept feeling something messing with the buckle on my dive mask, turned around, and it was as big as I was. They are completely different colors at depth too. It's like when you take a dolphin out of water, how it changes. Same with those fish.


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## Bonito (Nov 17, 2008)

capt mullet said:


> there is no shortage of jewfish anymore. they are a serious nuisance in Florida and should be allowed to be retained for consumption.


Absolutely correct ! They eat everything in sight. There should be a limited and controled harvest.


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## jewfish (Feb 16, 2005)

*my new avitar*



McDaniel8402 said:


> Oh man, I've been waiting for a chance to post this. lmao


 If the shoe fits wear it, if the truth hurts bear it


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## crashboatbasin (May 21, 2009)

Well that must be a juvenile compared to that 500 pounder, so maybe momma is swimming around the area !!


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