143 lbs, Record breaking Blue cat: Biggest catfish ever caught in America

[Left C]

http://americanprocatters.com/?p=1296

On Saturday night, June 18, Fathers day weekend a North Carolina man, Nick Anderson, a high school football coach from Geenville NC, caught a new world record blue cat in the John H. Kerr-Buggs Island Lake around the Goat Island area near Clarksville VA which is 1½ hours northeast of my home. The fish was certified at 143 pounds and was 57 inches long with a girth of 47 inches. Earlier this year, a VA state record 109 pound blue catfish was caught in Buggs Island Lake. Just a few weeks ago Nick’s father Rick landed a 95 pound blue cat. The previous record catfish weighed 130 lbs and was caught in the Missouri River.

 

[aquabillpers]

What a huge fish!

I wonder if they ate it, gave the meat away, or just left it to rot after the pictures were taken?

Bill

 

[Tom Barr]

Catch and release, this fish could have produced millions of off spring.

 

[Left C]

It didn't survive. I know that much. Usually, people eat the smaller catfish and release the larger ones. The meat on the larger ones isn't very tasty I've been told.

"Although great lengths were taken to save the fish unfortunately it didn't make it! Though we all would have liked to see the fish survive, lets face it! nobody is ever prepared to house a monster cat of that size. The APC commends all who were involved in its survival efforts."

You would think that they would take it to the taxidermist and have it mounted.

 

[aquabillpers]

Then let them take the pictures and return the fish to the water! Lots of sportsmen do just that.

Bill

 

[Left C]

They had to take it to a place that was big enough to weigh it which wasn't really close by. I suppose that this is one way to prove that it is actually an USA record.

It is very sad that this old fish died.

There are numerous lakes around here that were formed from dams built it the 30's to 50's. Many of the skin divers that dive in these lakes say that they have seen catfish so large hanging around the dams that they could probably eat the divers. Some of the divers wouldn't go back in because of this. This is a tale that I've heard since I was young.

 

[Tom Barr]

The fish must have been 30-50 years old or more.

 

[oldpunk]

wow, that's a big cat.

I can never get over the fact that when ever I go swimming in lake shasta there are 10'+ sturgeon swimming beneath me.

 

[ShadowMac]

LeftC,

I've heard a very similar thing about divers in Ft. Peck lake in MT. I used to live nearby and heard of divers who had gone down to put chains around some logs in order to haul them out and almost putting chains around catfish. Some big enough to swallow divers...some divers refused to go back in...Very similar story.

There are also huge sturgeon in that lake.

 

[Left C]

9 feet long, 646 lbs Mekong River Catfish - World Record

Unknown Weight Mekong River Catfish

The world record Mekong River catfish, as big as a Grizzly Bear, was netted in 2005. This female catfish was stripped of her eggs as part of a captive breeding program as these are an endangered species. They were hoping to release her. Sadly, she died and the villagers ate her. You will notice that this catfish doesn't have barbels like most catfish. It doesn't have teeth either. Recently it has been found that these catfish spends part of its life at sea while doing isotope studies. The Mekong people believe that this catfish is a sacred fish, because it persists on plant matter and 'meditates' in the deep, stony pools of the Mekong River somewhat like a Buddhist monk. Several dams are planned along the Mekong River which meanders through six countries (China, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam) may bring an extinction to this species. This is a migratory species and spawns in Thailand. There are already dams in China on the Mekong River.

References
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/06/photogalleries/giantcatfish/index.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/photogalleries/catfish-pictures/index.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/04/080408-giant-catfish.html

Video
http://www.extremescience.com/zoom/index.php/animal-kingdom-records/19-giant-catfish-vdeo

 

[Biollante]

I Am As "They" Say-- Conflicted

Hi,

I find this awesome and sad at the same time…

I am considering posting the picture in my Cory grow-out tanks...

Biollante

 

[feh]

I had an uncle that used to catch fish like that on a trot-line... he'd cut 'em up into fillets and sell it off. Don't know why. I just remember seeing 6ft cat-fish in the back of his truck.