160kg monster grouper caught off Labuan
Published on: Monday, September 27, 2021
By: Bernama
The grouper, known by locals as “keratang”, was sold for RM8,000. (Photo: Fishermen Harbour Restaurant)
LABUAN: Fishermen caught a massive grouper weighing 160 kilogrammes in the waters about 100 nautical miles off Labuan on Sunday.
Tuna fisherman Dullah Latif, 64, said his workers only managed to reel in the monster grouper with a fishing rod after a hard struggle.
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The grouper, known by locals as “keratang”, was sold for RM8,000 to the popular Fishermen Harbour Restaurant at the Paragon commercial centre here.
The grouper was more than seven feet long and had a sharp dorsal spine measuring over three feet in length.
Dullah said his workers, who had set out to the open sea near the Marine Farms on Saturday morning, were surprised by the catch.
“After a more than 30-minute fight, our three pretty tired fishermen came face to face with the monstrous grouper.
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"The grouper floated to the surface and my fishermen all started screaming and hollering. They didn't realise how difficult it would be to bring the fish to the boat. It took three of them to lift the fish into the boat," he said
Dullah said it was not their first big catch, as in February 2019 he himself had landed a 241 kg grouper, which was sold for RM13,225, followed by other catches weighing 165 kg and 135 kg.
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According to local fishermen, this giant grouper family can live between 30 and 50 years.
Fishermen Harbour’s captain Dylan Chua said the grouper would be sliced into small pieces for preparing its fish noodle soup, braised with brown sauce and mixed with mushrooms.
“The fish can also be used for our popular menu of stir-fried with ginger and spring onions and stir-fried with black beans sauce,” he said.
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