Fury divers spear protected groper fish off North Stradbroke Island
The ‘iconic’ fish, a protected species, was speared off North Stradbroke Island - and it has sparked fury.
A protected groper fish known as the “Bambi of the sea” has been illegally speared on North Stradbroke Island, just weeks after a similar incident in Sydney.
The fish, estimated to be about 1m long, was speared off the rock wall at Amity Point about midday on Tuesday, February 13.
Photos were taken of one of three diver with the fish and of the creature floating dead in the water.
The Queensland groper is the largest bony reef-dwelling fish in the world, growing to almost 3m and is a protected species.
A spokesperson for Queensland Fisheries told news.com.au they were investigating the incident and “had already received helpful information from members of the public” but declined to elaborate further.
Environment scientist Dr Daryl McPhee, who is currently based on the island, told news.com.au the Queensland groper was the “Bambi of the sea”.
“Every real spearfisherman knows that spearing a groper is illegal and just no challenge whatsoever,” he said.
“It is an iconic Queensland species and it has been protected for a long time.”
Dr McPhee said the incident had outraged the local fishing and conservation communities of Moreton Bay.
The spearing occurred in the Moreton Bay Marine Park but in a location where spearfishing is allowed.
“The perpetrators should do the right thing and hand themselves in to the Queensland Boating and Fisheries Patrol,” Dr McPhee said.
“They should be prosecuted with the full weight of the law and if convicted receive a penalty consistent with the community outrage.”
The incident follows a similar one in Sydney where a blue groper, a species protected from spearfishing in NSW, was speared in front of onlookers.
The groper, affectionately named ‘Gus’ by the community, was speared at Old Park in Cronulla, which is a well-signed no-spearfishing zone.
The spearfisherman who posed was fined $500 after a police investigation.
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