Not a classic fish tale: Mississippian breaks state record for giant catfish
The 104-pound monster the Mississippi man hooked became the new ‘State Trophy Record Blue Catfish.’ The previous record was broken in 1997, weighing in at 101 pounds.
Christopher Halley caught this 104-pound catfish in Mississippi earlier this month.
(Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks)
NATCHEZ, Miss. – While it wasn’t moonlight on a duck blind, it was a catfish on a trotline in Mississippi earlier this month.
Christopher Halley was fishing in the Mississippi River near Natchez when he realized a giant fish had taken hold of his trotline.
The 104-pound monster he hooked became the new ‘State Trophy Record Blue Catfish.’ The previous record was broken in 1997, weighing in at 101 pounds.
Christopher Halley and his family next to the 104-pound catfish he caught in the Mississippi River.
(Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries & Parks)
This monster may be a record-breaker for Mississippi, but NOAA Fisheries says that they’ve seen much larger fish.
"One caught in an inland lake on the Virginia–North Carolina border weighed 143 pounds," NOAA said. "While adults usually grow to be less than 2 feet long, they can grow to be 5 feet long and weigh more than 100 pounds."
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The Mississippi Department of Wildlife said Halley's catch was the second blue catfish state record broken this year. Earlier in the year, someone reeled in a 131-pound catfish with a rod.
The department classifies fishing records into three categories: rod and reel, trophy and fly fishing.