Fisherman caught illegally catching flounder in Cherry Grove. Here’s what happened

An angler was caught in North Myrtle Beach for keeping more flounder than allowed per state law, officials said.

In a Facebook post, South Carolina Game Wardens said an officer conducted a investigation on a vessel Saturday from Tabor City, N.C. that had 25 flounder on the boat with 17 of them being as small as 10 inches long. The fisherman initially told the officer that he had not caught any fish.

The post, which garnered over 300 shares and 200 comments, shows pictures of the flounder the wildlife officer found on the boat.

In July, a law went into effect that specifies size limits and the number of flounder fisherman are allowed to keep. The limit is five flounder per person each day or 10 per boat each day. The minimum length of each founder must be 16 inches. Previously, each flounder had to be at least 15 inches, and the catch limit per day was 10 fish per person or 20 fish per boat.

State lawmakers approved the bill to “reduce the harvest of southern flounder in South Carolina waters, allowing the population to begin recovery,” according to a June press release by the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. Results from a 2019 regional study and a study conducted by biologists from the department found that southern flounder numbers were down due to overfishing.

There was also a public survey, which showed that South Carolina fisherman shared similar concerns about the dwindling flounder numbers.

“These new management measures will end the overharvest of flounder, allowing the fishery to begin to rebuild,” Phil Maier, who oversees the agency’s Marine Resources Division, said in the release. “We’re grateful to the angling community for sharing their vision for the fishery and to the leaders who worked hard to craft this solution. We look forward to seeing this popular fish become a more common catch along the South Carolina coast.”

The new rules apply to all the flounder species found in South Carolina waters, including, gulf, summer and southern flounder.

David Lucas, a spokesman for the state department, said he doesn’t know how often anglers are cited for illegally catching flounder, but said in an email that officers “regularly patrol inshore waters and make routine checks” to ensure fisherman are following the law.

“Flounder are a popular species targeted by saltwater anglers and are targeted using both hooks-and-lines or by “gigging,” which is done at night,” Lucas said. “Flounder are known for being excellent table fare.”

Anyone who is found guilty of breaking any of those rules can be fined up to $500 or face jail time for up to 30 days.

“Each fish taken, possessed, sold, offered for sale, purchased, or attempted to be sold, purchased, brought to the dock, or landed in violation of this article is a separate offense,” according to state law.