Georgia Angler Lands Record Bluegill
Sep 15, 2021 10:43:00 #
greenfrog
Loc: Central NJ
Georgia Angler Lands Record 1-Lb., 7.68-Oz. Bluegill
The fisherman and his buddy thought it was a catfish at first, but soon realized they had a record catch
BY MORGAN LYLE | PUBLISHED SEP 14, 2021 3:00 PM
In southwest Georgia and everywhere else, bluegills are tasty and plentiful, but usually weigh about a half-pound at best. Even so, Wendell Mathis had been hoping to catch one that weighed a pound from his boat on Lake Seminole.
Instead, in late August, he ended up catching a bluegill that weighed nearly a pound and a half, handily beating a decade-old record listed by the Georgia Outdoor News (GON). The record bluegill took a cricket in about 3.5 feet of water near a partially exposed boat that was wrecked near the shore by Hurricane Michael in 2018.
Having been kept busy by average-sized bluegills during a willowfly (mayfly) hatch, Mathis and his friend Randy Weathersby thought the heavier fish on the line was a run-of-the-mill catfish. Mathis even told Weathersby not to bother with the net—until both men realized the fish was not a catfish, but an extraordinary bluegill.
“If there were any hydrilla or lily pads, I wouldn’t have landed him,” Mathis told the Donalsonville News. “But when we saw the red belly, Randy grabbed the net, got it under him, and we got him in the boat.”
They captured the fish just in the nick of time, as it turned out. “I went to pick him up and my line broke,” Mathis told the paper. “In the picture, you can still see the broken line in the bream’s mouth. Straight luck! It was just meant to be, I reckon.”
Hand-held scales showed the weight of the bluegill as 1.7 pounds. The next morning, Mathis was able to weigh the fish on a certified scale per GON rules, and came up with 1 pound, 7.68 ounces. The previous record was 1 pound, 2.4 ounces set by William Hornsby in 2011.
The GON records are separate from those kept by Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The DNR record bluegill is a 3.5-pound jumbo caught in 1977 by one P.F. Gumm. The International Game Fish Association’s all-tackle world record is 4 pounds, 12 ounces, caught at Ketona Lake in Alabama by T. Hudson way back in 1950.
GON’s criteria for record fish are similar to those of government agencies. Fish must be caught legally by rod and reel in a manner consistent with state game and fish regulations; must be weighed on accurate Georgia Department of Agriculture-certified scales with at least two witnesses present, and must be identified by DNR personnel.
Mathis may be thinking of upgrading his phone in case more record fish are in his future. “I have an old flip phone,” Mathis told the Donalsonville News. “I normally fish alone or with my wife Angel, so thank goodness Randy was with me, because he has an updated phone for pictures. He was more excited about the fish than I was.”
link: https://www.fieldandstream.com/fishing/georgia-angler-lands-record-bluegill/
The fisherman and his buddy thought it was a catfish at first, but soon realized they had a record catch
BY MORGAN LYLE | PUBLISHED SEP 14, 2021 3:00 PM
In southwest Georgia and everywhere else, bluegills are tasty and plentiful, but usually weigh about a half-pound at best. Even so, Wendell Mathis had been hoping to catch one that weighed a pound from his boat on Lake Seminole.
Instead, in late August, he ended up catching a bluegill that weighed nearly a pound and a half, handily beating a decade-old record listed by the Georgia Outdoor News (GON). The record bluegill took a cricket in about 3.5 feet of water near a partially exposed boat that was wrecked near the shore by Hurricane Michael in 2018.
Having been kept busy by average-sized bluegills during a willowfly (mayfly) hatch, Mathis and his friend Randy Weathersby thought the heavier fish on the line was a run-of-the-mill catfish. Mathis even told Weathersby not to bother with the net—until both men realized the fish was not a catfish, but an extraordinary bluegill.
“If there were any hydrilla or lily pads, I wouldn’t have landed him,” Mathis told the Donalsonville News. “But when we saw the red belly, Randy grabbed the net, got it under him, and we got him in the boat.”
They captured the fish just in the nick of time, as it turned out. “I went to pick him up and my line broke,” Mathis told the paper. “In the picture, you can still see the broken line in the bream’s mouth. Straight luck! It was just meant to be, I reckon.”
Hand-held scales showed the weight of the bluegill as 1.7 pounds. The next morning, Mathis was able to weigh the fish on a certified scale per GON rules, and came up with 1 pound, 7.68 ounces. The previous record was 1 pound, 2.4 ounces set by William Hornsby in 2011.
The GON records are separate from those kept by Georgia’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR). The DNR record bluegill is a 3.5-pound jumbo caught in 1977 by one P.F. Gumm. The International Game Fish Association’s all-tackle world record is 4 pounds, 12 ounces, caught at Ketona Lake in Alabama by T. Hudson way back in 1950.
GON’s criteria for record fish are similar to those of government agencies. Fish must be caught legally by rod and reel in a manner consistent with state game and fish regulations; must be weighed on accurate Georgia Department of Agriculture-certified scales with at least two witnesses present, and must be identified by DNR personnel.
Mathis may be thinking of upgrading his phone in case more record fish are in his future. “I have an old flip phone,” Mathis told the Donalsonville News. “I normally fish alone or with my wife Angel, so thank goodness Randy was with me, because he has an updated phone for pictures. He was more excited about the fish than I was.”
link: https://www.fieldandstream.com/fishing/georgia-angler-lands-record-bluegill/
Mathis with his record bluegill. Randy Weathersby
Sep 15, 2021 10:49:08 #
It seems like a lot of fish records are being broken this year, with a variety of species! It's a good thing we are doing our part to keep a line wet...you never know when the next record sized fish is awaiting your arrival so they get a chance to visit the scales and give a wink to the weighmaster!
Sep 15, 2021 11:07:23 #
Sep 15, 2021 11:18:44 #
Sep 15, 2021 22:06:15 #
Dang! That's enough for a couple meals and a half, and the colors are stunning. Looks like a spawning male?
Sep 16, 2021 09:18:07 #
Blindman
Loc: Wisconsin
fishyaker wrote:
It seems like a lot of fish records are being broken this year, with a variety of species! It's a good thing we are doing our part to keep a line wet...you never know when the next record sized fish is awaiting your arrival so they get a chance to visit the scales and give a wink to the weighmaster!
Yeah there must be a reason for all the records. Is it global warming or covid? LOL
Mike
Sep 16, 2021 11:04:37 #
Sep 16, 2021 15:48:04 #
Whitereb
Loc: Lake Guntersville Alabama
Here in Alabama record is 4lb 2 oz bluegill would love to break that record now the redbreast is only 1lb 4oz
Sep 16, 2021 15:53:02 #
Now, that angler can do like Junior Samples did. Make up a funny story about his catch, and the even bigger one that got away, and parlay all of it into a starring role on the Grand Ole Opry! Make a fortune an become famous with his own BR 549! Just Sayin...RJS
Sep 16, 2021 15:55:23 #
DCGravity wrote:
Dang! That's enough for a couple meals and a half, and the colors are stunning. Looks like a spawning male?
Does like like spawning colors, but in August, in Georgia? Maybe they spawn twine down there? NOT being sarcastic, just don't know. Beautiful gil. indeed.
Sep 16, 2021 18:07:13 #
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