XVII. Gray Triggerfish
A. It is unlawful to possess gray triggerfish less than 12 inches total length.
B. It is unlawful to possess more than 1,000 pounds (whole weight) of gray triggerfish per trip.
XVIII. Harvest Restrictions
A. It is unlawful to use or have on board a vessel fish traps for taking snappers and groupers except sea bass pots as allowed in Section XV.B below.
B. South of Cape Hatteras it is unlawful to take black sea bass with pots that fail to conform with the federal rule requirements for configuration, mesh sizes, degradable materials, and escape panels as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.189(b) through (d), and identification requirements as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.177(a).
C. It is unlawful to possess any species of the Snapper Grouper complex except snowy grouper, yellowedge grouper, misty grouper, blueline tilefish, golden tilefish and sand tilefish while having longline gear aboard a vessel during open harvest seasons.
D. It is unlawful to fail to use dehooking tools in the snapper grouper fisheries when the fish is to be released as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.188.
E. It is unlawful to possess any species of the snapper grouper complex without heads and fins intact as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.186.
F. As an exception to Section I.A., spadefish may be retained and sold in any number without a Federal Commercial South Atlantic Snapper Grouper Permit when taken for commercial purposes in coastal waters.
XIX. Gear Modifications – Effective 12:01 A.M. July 15, 2020
A. It is unlawful to fail to use non-offset, non-stainless steel circle hooks (50 CFR Part §622.2) while fishing for or possessing snapper grouper species while using natural baits as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.188. A non-offset hook has the point and barb in-line with the hook shank (See Diagrams).
B. It is unlawful to fail to possess a descending device on board which is readily available for use while fishing for or possessing snapper grouper species as specified in 50 CFR Part §622.188. A descending device is defined as an instrument capable of releasing the fish at the depth from which the fish was caught, and to which is attached a minimum of a 16-ounce (454-gram) weight and a minimum of a 60-ft (18.3-m) length of line.
Snapper Grouper Complex Species |
Snappers | Groupers | | Triggerfish | Grunts | Sea Basses |
Blackfin snapper+ | Black grouper | Wreckfish | Gray triggerfish | Cottonwick** | Bank sea bass** |
Cubera snapper | Coney | Yellowedge grouper+ | Ocean triggerfish** | Margate | Black sea bass |
Gray snapper | Gag | Yellowfin grouper | | Sailors choice | Rock sea bass** |
Lane snapper | Goliath grouper* | Yellowmouth grouper | Jacks | Tomtate | |
Mutton snapper | Graysby | | Almaco jack++ | White grunt | |
Queen snapper+ | Misty grouper+ | Porgys | Banded rudderfish++ | | |
Red snapper | Nassau grouper* | Jolthead porgy× | Bar jack | Spadefishes | |
Silk snapper+ | Red grouper | Knobbed porgy× | Greater amberjack | Spadefish | |
Vermilion snapper | Red hind | Longspine porgy** | Lesser amberjack++ | | |
Yellowtail snapper | Rock hind | Red porgy | | Wrasses | |
| Scamp | Saucereye porgy× | Tilefishes | Hogfish | |
| Speckled hind* | Scup× | Blueline tilefish | | |
| Snowy grouper | Whitebone porgy× | Golden tilefish | | |
| Warsaw grouper* | | Sand tilefish+ | | |
| *Harvest prohibited; ** Ecosystem component species (not subject to annual catch limits or management measures) ; +Deepwater Complex species; ++Other Jacks Complex species; ×Porgies Complex species |
Table 1. Eastern boundary coordinates for the seasonal black sea bass pot closure from November 1 through 30 and April 1 through 30 each year.
Point | N. Latitude | W. Longitude | Point | N. Latitude | W. Longitude |
1 | 35° 15’ | State/EEZ Boundary | 19 | 33° 06’ | 78° 31’ |
2 | 35° 15’ | 75° 09’ | 20 | 33° 05’ | 78° 40’ |
3 | 35° 06’ | 75° 22’ | 21 | 33° 01’ | 78° 43’ |
4 | 35° 06’ | 75° 39’ | 22 | 32° 56’ | 78° 57’ |
5 | 35° 01’ | 75° 47’ | 23 | 32° 44’ | 79° 04’ |
6 | 34° 54’ | 75° 46’ | 24 | 32° 42’ | 79° 13’ |
7 | 34° 52’ | 76° 04’ | 25 | 32° 34’ | 79° 23’ |
8 | 34° 33’ | 76° 22’ | 26 | 32° 25’ | 79° 25’ |
9 | 34° 23’ | 76° 18’ | 27 | 32° 23’ | 79° 37’ |
10 | 34° 21’ | 76° 27’ | 28 | 31° 53’ | 80° 09’ |
11 | 34° 25’ | 76° 51’ | 29 | 31° 31’ | 80° 33’ |
12 | 34° 09’ | 77° 19’ | 30 | 30° 43’ | 80° 49’ |
13 | 33° 44’ | 77° 38’ | 31 | 30° 30’ | 81° 01’ |
14 | 33° 25’ | 77° 27’ | 32 | 29° 45’ | 81° 01’ |
15 | 33° 22’ | 77° 40’ | 33 | 29° 31’ | 80° 58’ |
16 | 33° 28’ | 77° 41’ | 34 | 29° 13’ | 80° 52’ |
17 | 33° 32’ | 77° 53’ | 35 | 29° 13’ | State/EEZ Boundary |
18 | 33° 22’ | 78° 26’ | | | |
