Joshua Dixon caught this 57-pound flatfish catfish on Dec. 27, 2020, to set a new Maryland record. (Photo by Joshua Dixon)
January 06, 2021
By Game and Fish Staff
Flathead catfish may be an invasive species in the state of Maryland, but that doesn't matter to one fortunate angler who caught a big one a couple of days after Christmas.
At first, Joshua Dixon thought he hooked a submerged tree, but a half-hour later on Dec. 27 he landed the state’s first record flathead catfish. Officially recognized by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources as a record, the 57-pound, 50-inch fish was caught from the shoreline with a lure and gear traditionally used for bass.
Dixon was fishing near the Lapidum Boat Ramp on the Susquehanna River with a Zoom soft-plastic swimbait and medium-weight spinning tackle. It took him nearly 30 minute to bring the trophy to shore.
"It was really weird because I thought I snagged a tree," Dixon said in a news release. "It didn't feel like a fish but after a while, it was going crazy."
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Dixon donated the fish to a friend who turned the brute into delicious fillets.
The record-breaking catch eclipsed the state's minimum flathead catfish weight of 40 pounds. It was officially certified by Jack Manning of Keen Compressed Gas in Elkton, and confirmed by a Maryland Department of Natural Resources biologist.
The department maintains state records for sport fish in four divisions – Atlantic, Chesapeake, Nontidal, and Invasive – and awards plaques to anglers who achieve record catches. Fish caught from privately owned, fee-fishing waters are ineligible for consideration.
Anglers who think they have a potential record catch should download and fill out the state record application and call 443-569-1381 or 410-260-8325. The department recommends the fish be immersed in ice water to preserve its weight until it can be checked, confirmed, and certified.
