Aquatic Life Finalist: Tunnel Vision
Tunnel Vision by Tom Shelsinger
Tom Shelsinger took this photo of a male Atlantic goliath grouper surrounded by scads off the coast of Florida during the groupers’ spawning season. Goliath groupers are the Atlantic’s biggest grouper species, and can weigh up to 800 pounds.
In past decades they were heavily overfished, and their numbers dropped precipitously. But regulations and a moratorium on goliath grouper fishing helped the population start to recover. Earlier this year though, Florida began once again issuing sport permits for the giant fish, against the advice of many scientists.
