Jaw-Dropping Clip Shows Gigantic 'Sea Monster' As It Devours Shark In Single Gulp

Sep 23, 2021

There’s no doubt that the ocean is a scary and mysterious place. Not only is it unfathomably vast in its depth and size, but it’s also home to an estimated 700,000 marine species. And so far, we’ve only identified 226,000, or about 32%.

It is, then, no wonder why the ocean has captured our imaginations with countless Hollywood movies from Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws” to James Cameron’s “The Abyss.”

John Brossard, who runs Shark Chaser Charters, recently captured footage that was so stunning that it could have been pulled straight from one of these films. Brossard, the boat’s captain, was out off the coast of Goodland, Florida, in September 2021, trying to reel in a small shark. But then three massive sea creatures appeared: Atlantic goliath groupers. These fish are so big that some publications are calling them "sea monsters." 

According to American Oceans, Atlantic goliath groupers can reach up to 8 feet in length and up to 800 pounds in weight. With thick, large, speckled bodies and a gnarly underbite, these fish certainly look like sea monsters — and it turns out they eat like them, too.

In a now-viral video that showcases these amazing creatures, Brossard is admiring the three goliath groupers who are surrounding the shark he is hoping to reel in when one of the massive groupers suddenly darts toward the shark, swallowing him whole.

“Oh, he got him!” someone exclaims in the video.

Brossard’s stunning video is a reminder not only of the ocean’s cruel beauty but also of how different and unknown life in the sea really is. Read on to hear more about Brossard’s stunning encounter with a goliath grouper.

“Basically, we were shark-fishing when all of a sudden two or three goliath groupers started hanging out under the boat waiting for our catch to come in,” Brossard told the Daily Mail.

“We were just thinking ‘wow, unbelievable! Something is going to eat a shark and it's bigger than a shark,’” he added.

Brossard also told the publication that the grouper, which he estimates weighed 500 pounds, broker their 50-pound test line while taking down the shark.

Such encounters are not so uncommon in the area — “basically the Florida Everglades,” according to Brossard — where they were fishing.

The Everglades is a unique ecosystem and wetland at the southern tip of Florida that covers over 7,000 square miles. It is home to more than 360 bird species, the endangered Florida panther, the West Indian manatee, and a whole host of other marine life. 

“There are sharks, alligators, crocodiles, pythons, dolphins and manatees all in one place,” Brossard explained.

“It's the only place in the world that has all these creatures in one place and everything there tries to eat everything else. Bull sharks have been seen getting eaten by crocodiles and alligators sometimes, and sharks also get eaten by bigger fish there.”

According to Fishing Booker, groupers are one of Florida's iconic species. 

Groupers of big and small sizes are bottom dwellers that are often favorites of fishers in the area. Some of the groupers that are common in Florida are Black Grouper, Gag Grouper, Goliath Grouper, Nassau Grouper,  Red Grouper, Scamp Grouper, Snowy Grouper, Speckled Hind, Warsaw Grouper, Yellowfin Grouper, and Yellowmouth Grouper, among others. 

Brossard runs a business where he takes clients out onto the waters of Naples, Marco Island, and Goodland, Florida, to go shark fishing. 

“I moved to Florida when I was 10 years old and started fishing. I saw the movie JAWS in 1975 and was hooked on shark fishing ever since,” Brossard writes on his website.

On YouTube, Brossard has uploaded dozens of videos from his fishing expeditions.

In another popular video from Brossard’s channel, he catches a 350-pound female bull shark off the coast of Marco Island.

Brossard's business, Shark Chaser Charters, not only allows clients to go shark fishing, but it is also taking part in the proactive conservation of Florida's fisheries by offering a catch and release option for their clients. According to their website, the company even encourages it over clients keeping their catch:

"You are more than welcome to keep your catch, in accordance with Florida regulations, but catch and release is encouraged...We do catch but do not keep sharks over 4 foot long as they are our breeding stock."

The business also encourages clients to choose the optimal time for sharking fishing, which the website says states are from March to December. With 139 reviews on Trip Advisor, many people have given Brossard's business an 'excellent reveiw.' One client wrote:

"I’ve been on a lot of charters in the Florida area and captain John was up there with the top captains. He put us on the fish and fish we wanted to catch. In one day we caught 5 different species of shark, cobia, snook and even hooked on to a Goliath grouper our arms were ready to fall off."

What do you think of this incredible video? Have you ever seen a grouper or shark in real life? Let us know — and be sure to pass this video on to others.