Skip to main content

'First Bite' Gator Trout Sets North Carolina Fishing Record

Monster speckled seatrout breaks mark that stood for 61 years.

'First Bite' Gator Trout Sets North Carolina Fishing Record

Todd Spangler hoists his 12-pound 8-ounce North Carolina state-record speckled seatrout. (Photo by Todd Spangler/Courtesy of Z-man Fishing)

What one North Carolina inshore angler thought at first was a nice striped bass turned into the biggest speckled trout caught in state history.

Todd Spangler's 12-pound, 8-ounce fish caught Feb. 9 in the lower Neuse River beat a state record that had stood for more than 60 years, according to the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries. He caught it on a 4-inch Z-Man Scented Jerk ShadZ and 1/8-ounce HeadlockZ HD jighead.

North Carolina Record Seatrout
Todd Spangler's North Carolina record speckled seatrout broke a 61-year-old record. (Photo courtesy of N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries)

The record measured 33.5 inches long and had an 18-inch girth. The previous record was 12-4, caught in 1961 off Wrightsville Beach.

Spangler said the record fish came on the "first bite of the day," in a news release on the catch from Z-Man Fishing. "I’d been retrieving the bait by popping it up and letting it fall back to the bottom—trying to imitate a shrimp—when I felt a sharp little thump, almost right below the boat. My initial thought was that it struck like a smaller trout, but when I felt the big head shakes and screaming drag, my buddy and I thought we’d hooked a sizeable striped bass.

“A few minutes into the fight, we saw a broad silvery flash, which further fooled us into thinking striper. This time of year, we’re mostly targeting seatrout, which bunch up in big numbers in these creeks during the winter. We often catch redfish and stripers, too, but striper season is closed."

[revelad]

The fish weighed 12.52 on Spangler’s digital scale, and his fishing buddy Josh Hamby immediately looked up the state record on his cell phone. “I knew by his expression that we might have a special trout on board," Spangler said.

The anglers weighed the fish at Neuse River Bait & Tackle in nearby Grantsboro—again 12.52 pounds—and it was later certified by a state fisheries biologist.

North Carolina Record Seatrout Z-Man
A Z-Man Jerk ShadZ (Dark N Stormy) / HeadlockZ HD Jighead combo produced the state-record trout. (Photo courtesy of Z-Man Fishing)

Spangler caught the record with a Daiwa Procyon reel and a custom-built spinning rod he had finished just a week before catching the fish.

The trout hit Z-Man’s special Dark N Stormy hue, a pattern by Z-Man pro Captain C.A. Richardson. "It’s sort of an electric purple color with silver flake that just lights up and comes alive in the water,” Spangler observes. “I’ve caught a lot of fish on that pattern—on the Jerk ShadZ, as well as the 3-inch MinnowZ™ and larger DieZel MinnowZ™."

 /></figure><p>For more information on North Carolina record fish, go to the <a href=State Saltwater Records webpage or contact the North Carolina Saltwater Fishing Tournament staff at saltwater.citations@ncdenr.gov.



GET THE NEWSLETTER Join the List and Never Miss a Thing.

Recommended Articles

Recent Videos

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Hunting

Kali Parmley - Florida Turkey Slam #1

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Fishing

Bass Crash Course: How and When to Fish a Buzz Toad

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Destinations

Polaris – Pack Up and Play On

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Gear

Polaris – Camping Adventures In Style

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Fishing

Bass Crash Course: How to Find Bass in an Unfamiliar Lake

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Fishing

Bass Crash Course: Is Bait Color Choice Important?

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Gear

What Turkey Hunters Need to Know About TSS

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Learn

onX Hunt: Your Edge for Successful Spring Turkey Hunts

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Destinations

Cigars International – Enjoying the Finer Things

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Gear

Streamlight – Illuminating Your Adventure

It's fun to procure your own food while out camping, but you're going to want to have snacks along the way. Instead of r...
Destinations

Suckerpunch – Snacks While Securing Dinner

Game & Fish Magazine Covers Print and Tablet Versions

GET THE MAGAZINE Subscribe & Save

Digital Now Included!

SUBSCRIBE NOW

Give a Gift   |   Subscriber Services

PREVIEW THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Buy Digital Single Issues

Magazine App Logo

Don't miss an issue.
Buy single digital issue for your phone or tablet.

Get the Game & Fish App apple store google play store

Other Magazines

See All Other Magazines

Special Interest Magazines

See All Special Interest Magazines

GET THE NEWSLETTER Join the List and Never Miss a Thing.

Get the top Game & Fish stories delivered right to your inbox every week.

Phone Icon

Get Digital Access.

All Game & Fish subscribers now have digital access to their magazine content. This means you have the option to read your magazine on most popular phones and tablets.

To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine.

Get Digital Access

Not a Subscriber?
Subscribe Now

Enjoying What You're Reading?

Get a Full Year
of Guns & Ammo
& Digital Access.

Offer only for new subscribers.

Subscribe Now

Never Miss a Thing.

Get the Newsletter

Get the top Game & Fish stories delivered right to your inbox every week.

By signing up, I acknowledge that my email address is valid, and have read and accept the Terms of Use