State Record Catfish Likely 30-Plus Years Old

A recently caught state record catfish might be as old as the 30-year-old record it broke, according to the Arizona Game and Fish Department.

Carson Pete's 33.36-pound channel catfish caught Sunday on Upper Mary Lake near Flagstaff, breaking the previous record of 32 pounds, 4 ounces caught in 1987 by Chuck Berndt at Parker Canyon Lake.

"It is feasible that this new record catfish is 30-plus years old," AZGFD Wildlife Specialist Scott Rogers said in a press release. Rogers helped weigh the fish. "The oldest on record for this species is 40. These slow growing cats live a long time. Perhaps he was hatched the same year the old record was set."

Pete's fish measured 39 1/2 inches and took about 20 minutes to land.

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https://youtu.be/-0u39Lq8lqo

Via Arizona GameAndFish YouTube

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Pete was fishing from shore when he noticed a large fish tail about 50 yards away. So he hiked to the the fish.

From the Arizona Game and Fish news release:

He happened to have brought a heavy spinning rod with 50-pound braided line, a 60-pound fluorocarbon leader, and a 7/0 Gamakatsu circle hook. Just before the sun crawled beneath a horizon of pine trees, Pete grabbed a few frozen anchovies he'd dipped in a homemade fish oil/garlic mix and slid them onto the hook. Then he cast the bait near a brush line in 2 feet of water depth.

Immediately, a fish took the bait, drifted away -- and then bolted. Pete said he set the hook three times as the fish peeled out about 60 yards of line during a cool and breezy evening. After about 20 minutes of wrestling and reeling, Pete got the huge fish to shore.