Catfish – Syndication Server

West Virginia blue catfish record falls again, keeping streak alive

Michael John Drake becomes the fourth West Virginia angler to establish a blue catfish state record in as many years.

A West Virginia angler has become the latest state-record holder for blue catfish.

Michael John Drake, of St. Albans, was fishing with cut shad at the R.C. Byrd Pool on the Ohio River earlier this month when the giant catfish struck.

The fish weighed 69.45 pounds and measured 50.51 inches. The weight eclipsed the record mark of 67.22 pounds set last year by Steven Price.

According to the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources, this is the fourth consecutive year in which a new state record for blue catfish has been established.

For comparison, the all-tackle world record for blue catfish stands at 143 pounds, for a fish caught at Virginia’s Kerr Lake (Buggs Island Lake) in June 2011.

Watch: Crocodile ‘displays’ massive catfish for safari guests

A safari company in South Africa has shared footage showing a Nile crocodile seemingly showing off its super-impressive catch of the day.

A safari company in South Africa has shared footage showing a Nile crocodile maneuvering out of water carrying an enormous fish. (Footage posted below.)

“A young Nile Crocodile surprised us by proudly displaying a massive catfish it had just caught,” Dulini Lodge explained via Instagram. “Fish constitute the primary part of any crocodile’s diet, and are especially vital as younger crocodiles grow and develop over the years.”

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A post shared by Dulini (@dulinilodge)

As viewers can see, the catfish appears motionless with wounds on its body before the crocodile slinks back into the water with its meal.

Nile crocodiles are apex predators in Africa and, besides fish, the ambush specialists prey on other reptiles, mammals, and birds.

They’re also implicated in the deaths of hundreds of humans annually.

Nile crocodiles, found in 26 African countries, measure to nearly 17 feet and can weigh more than 1,500 pounds.

Dulini Lodge is a luxury safari complex within Sabi Sands Game Reserve, adjacent to Kruger National Park.

S.C. man lands giant blue catfish, sets bowfishing world record

A South Carolina bow fisherman has been granted a world record after landing a nearly 85-pound blue catfish on Jan. 6 at Santee Cooper Lakes. Stuart Vandyke also established a new state record, according to the Bowfishing Assn. of America. Vandyke …

A South Carolina bow fisherman has been granted a world record after landing a nearly 85-pound blue catfish on Jan. 6 at Santee Cooper Lakes.

Stuart Vandyke also established a new state record, according to the Bowfishing Assn. of America.

Vandyke “arrowed” the massive catfish just weeks after his friend, David Ard, hauled in an 80-pound blue catfish at Santee Cooper to set the state and world record.

ALSO: Texas angler lands one of the largest bass in state history

Wrote Carolina Fish and Hunt: “Once [Vandyke’s] arrow pierced the fish, he knew it would be big enough to vie for the record. He and his friends wrestled it aboard, then called a friend with a certified scale.

“They weighed the fish and got it entered into the Bowfishing Assn. of America’s record book, ending Ard’s short-lived status as world record holder.”

Vandyke’s catfish weighed 84.8 pounds.

His state and world record are recognized by the Bowfishing Assn. of America. The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources only recognizes bowfishing records for bowfin, carp, and longnose gar.

For comparison, the South Carolina rod-and-reel record for blue catfish stands at 113.8 pounds.

The rod-and-reel world record is listed at 143 pounds, for a 2011 catch at Virginia’s Kerr Lake.

–Image courtesy of the Bowfishing Assn. of America

Angler reels pending-record blue catfish from Tennessee river

A Tennessee angler on Saturday landed a pending state-record blue catfish while enjoying ‘kind of a date’ with his wife.

The 118-pound, 7-ounce catfish was reeled from the Cumberland River by Micka Burkhart, who was fishing with his wife, Amy. The fish was weighed in front of witnesses, including a state biologist, and released.

ALSO: Texas restaurant involved in shark-fin possession case identified

“The blue cat will be a new Tennessee record pending verification and certification,” The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency boasted Sunday on Facebook.

The current record, 112 pounds, was set in 1998, also on the Cumberland River.

Burkhart, in reference to Amy, told News 9: “We don’t get to fish together a whole lot [so] this was kind of like a date. In fact, that morning she made a joke saying, ‘Every time we go on a date, somehow or another your friends get involved.’ I told her, ‘Nope, today it’s just you and me on the river.’ ”

Burkhart was fishing with 30-pound-test line and using skipjack shad for bait. The catfish, kept in a live-well during his search for a certified scale, measured 54 inches with a girth of 41 inches.

For comparison, the world record for blue catfish stands at 143 pounds. That catch was made in 2011 by Richard Nicholas Anderson at Kerr Lake in Virginia.

Manti Te’o documentary: the world reacts

Have you watched? If so, what are your main takeaways?

You don’t have to be much of a college football fan whatsoever to recall the Manti Te’o catfishing story. Us being a Notre Dame based website means we’re plenty aware of it and how incredible of a player Te’o was during his time at Notre Dame, but the story of his girlfriend dying and then ultimately not actually ever existing meant it went from a sports story to a national news story.

I don’t think anyone ever forgot about the craziness that was around that story and it never really went away but for almost 10 years now there hasn’t been anything new that we’ve learned about it. At least until now.

Netflix recently released “Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn’t Exist,” a two part documentary on the entire story of Te’o, Lennay Kekua, and Naya Tuiasosopo and the catfishing scheme that took place.

The Twitter world reacted to the documentary and we’ll get to that in just a second but I wanted to next share just a couple of my initial takeaways.

NEXT: My initial thoughts after watching the documentary

Pages: 12

The best of Manti Te’o through the years

Netflix tells the story of how former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o was catfished

Angler shatters catfish record while fishing for sturgeon

An Idaho angler who was targeting sturgeon at C.J. Strike Reservoir last week shattered the state catch-and-release length record for channel catfish.

An Idaho angler has shattered the state catch-and-release length record for channel catfish.

Paul Newman landed the 42.5-inch catfish while fishing for sturgeon July 20 at C.J. Strike Reservoir. The previous length record was 33 inches, for a catfish caught at Lake Lowell in 2020.

According to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game, Newman’s catfish tipped his digital scale at 37 pounds before he turned it loose. Had the fish been weighed on a certified scale it would have shattered the existing weight record of 32.9 pounds.

ALSO: Angler in Mexico lands mystery fish ‘with human teeth’

“While this fish will earn a Catch-and-Release Record, the fish was easily large enough to beat the current 32.9-pound Certified Weight Record set only a few weeks ago by Cody Kastner, also from C.J. Strike Reservoir,” the IDFG stated.

C.J. Strike Reservoir spans 7,500 acres on the Snake and Bruneau rivers in southwestern Idaho.

–Image showing Paul Newman with his record catfish is courtesy of the Idaho Department of Fish and Game

Massive, near-record catfish ‘still out there’ for Iowa anglers

Iowa biologists conducting a recent fisheries survey on the Missouri River hauled up a very pregnant flathead catfish that weighed 72.4 pounds before it was released.

Iowa biologists conducting a recent survey on the Missouri River hauled up a very pregnant flathead catfish that weighed 72.4 pounds before it was released.

The massive fish was less than nine pounds shy of the state-record catch of 81 pounds, set in 1958.

ALSO: Elk poachers nabbed after ‘suspicious’ photo appears online

A photo of the catfish was shared Tuesday via Facebook by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources as a teaser for anglers who plan to get out on the water this weekend.

https://www.facebook.com/iowadnr/posts/pfbid02Sz4pHMLvEHuUJkbAkoy4ZxLb3w6FnpAwsiRwqLJLtQ2PfpWDypKKd3sk5UpUiV6ml

“This 49.5-inch, 72.4-pound flathead catfish is still out there, ready for you to catch Saturday on National Catfish Day!” the agency boasted. “Flathead catfish are native to Iowa. In June they usually begin spawning and can be found in surprisingly small streams.”

National Catfish Day is held annually on June 25 to “celebrate the value of farm-raised catfish” as table fare. For anglers, it’s just another excuse to go fishing.

The Facebook post generated 100 comments, mostly from people sharing images of giant catfish they’ve caught in Iowa waters.

Angler lands ‘gigantic’ flathead catfish, shatters 16-year-old record

A South Dakota angler has shattered a 16-year-old state record with the recent catch of a 67-pound, 8-ounce flathead catfish.

Ethan Evink, visiting from Iowa, caught the massive flathead while fishing with cutbait at dawn on the Missouri River in Union County.

According to South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks, Evink’s catch shatters a record (63 pounds, 8 ounces) that had stood since 2006.

The agency announced the new record Thursday, stating on Facebook:

“Ethan Evink of Hospers, Iowa, has set the new state record for flathead catfish at a gigantic 67 pounds 8 ounces!

“This monster came in at 51.5 inches long with a girth of 32.5 inches from the Missouri River in Union County. Ethan caught the flathead catfish at 5 a.m. using cutbait. Congratulations Ethan!”

For the sake of comparison, the all-tackle world record for flathead catfish stands at 123 pounds. That catch occurred at Elk City Reservoir in Kansas in 1998.

–Image showing Ethan Evink with his record flatheaad catfish is courtesy of South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks

Record-shattering catfish caught on Mississippi River

A Mississippi angler has shattered the state record for blue catfish after a 40-minute fight with what he described as “a fish of a lifetime.”

Eugene Cronley, of Brandon, hooked the massive catfish while using skipjack herring as bait on April 7 near Natchez on the Mississippi River.

“We could hardly get him in the boat,” Cronley told the Clarion Ledger. “I was wore out.”

The fish weighed 131 pounds and replaces a 95-pound blue catfish as the state record.

“The fish shattered the previous rod-and-reel record of 95 lbs. caught by Dakota Hinson in 2009, and is larger than the trophy record blue catfish of 101 lbs. caught by the team of Freddie Parker and Brad Smith in 1997,” the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks boasted Monday on Facebook.

Cronley described the catch as “truly a fish of a lifetime.”

Eugene Cronley (right) admires his record catch

For the sake of comparison, the all-tackle world record for blue catfish stands at 143 pounds. That catfish was caught at Virginia’s Kerr Lake in 2011.

Blue catfish are native to the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio River basin systems, and have been introduced elsewhere the U.S.

–Images showing the record catfish are courtesy of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks