Here are the monthly highlights from the world records department of the International Game Fish Association of selected documented fish catches made across the globe submitted for world records. The IGFA world records coordinator Rebecca Reynolds-Wright provided the following information on these recent submissions before the world records committee:
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| A number of ladies have been tackling IGFA world records. On holiday fishing Barra do Kwanza, Angola, young angler Lydia Nicolson of Brombrough Wirra, United Kingdom, guided by Cam Nicolson, and using a live sardine for bait, took 20 minutes to land a 46.6 kg (102 lb 11 oz) tarpon (Megalops atlanticus) on Dec. 28, 2007. She has sent her documentation to the IGFA in the female smallfry class category to potentially beat the current record of 86 lb caught in Laguan, San Jose, Carolina, Puerto Rico, Nov. 2005. | |
| Fly fishing for heavier game than the fish found in her home waters of Bozeman, Mont., USA, Dotty Ballantyne, landed a California yellowtail (Seriola lalandi dorslis) off Loreto, Mexico while being guided by Abel Davis. The fish weighed 11.34 kg (25 lb 0 oz) on 8 kg (16 lb) class tippet and took 28 minutes to land. The current women’s tippet class record is 8 lb 6 oz recorded in the IGFA records books from the waters of Uncle Sam Band, Baja California in January 2005. |
| | DeSoto, Kan. USA angler Joan Vandergriff, guided by Betsy Bullard, while fishing Golfito, Costa Rica, landed a Pacific snook (Centropomus spp.) in 25 minutes on February 13, 2008, weighing 14.23 kg (31 lb 6 oz) on 4 kg (8 lb) class line. The current IGFA women’s line class record is 8 lb 8 oz, caught in Isla Coiba, Panama in June 2005.|
| | A month later also at Golfito, Costa Rica, Betsy Bullard, now the angler and guided by Abraham Concepcion, landed a Pacific snook (Centropomus spp.) on March 14 weighing 16.98 kg (37 lb 7 oz) on 6 kg (12 lb) class line. She used live threadfin for bait and took 10 minutes to land the fish. The IGFA women’s line class record currently stands at 7 lb 9 oz caught in the Galapagos of Ecuador in January 2004.|
| | Hoping to beat here own 110 lb whaler shark (Carcharhinidae family) IGFA line class world record set last year on the aptly named Shark River of Flamingo in the Everglades of Florida, USA, Rebecca Wright, Hollywood, Fla., may have more than doubled it. Using a live blue runner for bait she hooked up for a 35 minute fight on 60 kg (130 lb) class line finally bringing her quarry in to weigh-in at 109.34 kg (241 lb 1 oz). Guided by Capt. Jay Wright Jr. she now has over 100 records.|
| | Using her guide Capt. Tim Klein’s TK Special fly, Islamorada, Fla., USA angler Diana A. Rudolph, landed a bonefish (Albula spp.) from her hometown waters January 15, weighing 5.24 kg (11 lb 9 oz). It took the multi-record holder 10 minutes to bring in the trophy fish on 10 kg (20 lb) tippet class. She’s hoping to break the current IGFA women’s record of 11 lb 2 oz from March, 2002 caught in the same area.|
| | Ms. Jodie L. Johnson, Peterborough, N.H., USA, fly fishing the warm waters of Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, this past December 13, landed an almaco jack, (Atlantic) (Seriola rivoliana) weighing 2.04 kg (4 lb 8 oz). Guided by Andrew Parsons she fought the fish for eight minutes using a Clouser fly tied on 3 kg (6 lb) class tippet. She’s hoping to beat her own current IGFA women’s 2 lb record for the specie, caught last year in the Bahamas. |
| | Fishing his home waters of Key West, Fla., USA, Tim Coleman, guided by Capt. Al Golinski, landed a gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) on Feb. 23, which weighed 4.99 kg (11 lb 0 oz). He used 6 kg (12 lb) class line and a jig with cut herring for bait. The IGFA men’s line class record for the newly added species is vacant.|
| | Fly fishing the warmer waters of the Seychelles’ Cosmoledo Atoll, where he holds several other records, Washington USA’s Rockwell Hammond Jr., of Fall City, landed a bluefin trevally (Caranx melampygus) on Feb. 18, weighing 2.83 kg (6 lb 4 oz). He hooked the fish using a Dr. Rockbottom fly tied to 2 kg (4 lb) class tippet and fought it for 15 minutes. The current IGFA men’s tippet mark for the specie is 6 lb recorded in 2001|
| | In Tanzania this past Dec. 7, fishing his home waters of Dar es Salaam and using a rainbow runner for bait, Benward Twalibu, landed a dogtooth tuna, (Gymnosarda unicolor), weighing 100.5 kg (221 lb 8 oz) for a pending IGFA men’s 37 kg (80 lb) line class record . Guided by Maddalena Martinengo, it took him 45 minutes to land the long running and tough fighting fish. He has hopes of beating the current IGFA men’s line class mark of 194 lbs. caught in Kwan-Tall Islands, Kwantall-Do, Korea.|
| | Escaping the cold weather of Wilton, Conn. USA, for the warmer Atlantic waters off Jupiter, Fla., junior angler Cody Lapnow, guided by Jeff Warshaw, landed an African pompano (Alectis ciliaris) this past February 23. Using goggle-eye for bait and after a 10 minute fight he landed the fish that weighed 19.96 kg (44 lb 0 oz). The current IGFA male junior record is 39 lb 4 oz caught nearly five years ago just north of Jupiter in Port Canaveral, Fla. |
| | Fly fishing the waters of Key West, Florida, USA, Dave Chermanski, of Merritt Island, Fla., guided by Willie Chermanski, landed a cero mackerel (Scomberomorus regalis) on Feb. 26. On his 4 kg (8 lb) class tippet he used his own hand-tied DC Simulator to entice the bite of the fish which weighed 3.8 3kg (8 lb 7 oz). It took him 10 minutes to land. With his documentation he hopes to beat the current IGFA mark of 7 lb 4 oz recorded in 2004 in the same Key West vicinity. |
| | Fishing his hometown of Newport, Oregon, USA, angler Todd Pietsch, landed a grass rockfish (Sebastes rastrelliger) on March 30, 2007, weighing 2.89 kg (6 lb 6 oz) to possibly tie the all-tackle record. The current IGFA record fish was caught in the same area earlier that same month.|
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March 2008** _
| Fly-fishing the Florida Keys USA, Martin Arostegui, Coral Gables, Fla., guided by Capt. Chris Morrison, landed a cero mackerel (Scomberomorus regalis) January 30 using 3 kg (6 lb) class tippet. Caught off Marathon, Fla. with his own hand-tied Arostegui Pilchard fly, the fish weighed 3.15 kg (6 lb 15 oz). Arostegui is hoping to add to his 200 plus IGFA world records with the men’s fly record of the catch which currently stands at 6 lb 8 oz. |
| | Singapore angler Bruno Binet, guided by Jean-Francois Helias (who is being honored with an IGFA Lifetime Achievement Award), landed a brownbanded bamboo shark (Shiloscyllium punctatum) on February 10, weighing 2.89 kg (6 lb 5 oz). They were fishing Kut Island, Gulf of Siam, Thailand, using squid for bait for the All-Tackle class record which presently stands in the IGFA record books at 4 lb 10 oz from the same area.|
| | The following day Bruno Binet, Singapore, again guided by Jean-Francois Helias, landed a duskytail grouper (Epinephelus bleekeri), weighing .95 kg (2 lb 1 oz) for an IGFA All-Tackle class submission. Binet used a squid for bait while fishing the Gulf of Siam’s Kut Island in Thailand. The weight of the fish could tie the current IGFA record also caught on Kut Island last year.|
| | Four times the strength of her 4 kg (8 lb) class tippet was the net weight result for Dr. Randee Ward, of Coppell, Texas, USA, who was fly fishing and landed a 14.51 kg (32 lb 0 oz) red drum, (Sciaenops ocellatus). Guided by Gregg Arnold, while fishing Hopedale, Louisiana USA. on January 13, it took her 62 minutes to land the fish which is up for an IGFA women’s tippet record that currently stands at 25 lb recorded two years ago on the Indian River in Florida.|
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February 2008
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| Catching a huge 400 plus pound shark can be a wrestling match for any angler but doing it using 6 kg (12 lb) class line adds another challenge. While fishing Australia’s Kiama Canyon, Andrew Finney of Greenwell Pt NSW, Australia, landed a blue shark (Prionace glauca) on September 16, 2007. Guided by Mitch Ryan and using mullet for bait, Finney wrestled with the shark for 30 minutes. Once under his control it weighed in at 192.4 kg (424 lb 2 oz). Finney is up for a male 12 lb IGFA line class record. Finney’s record may beat the 395 lb 11 oz from 15 years ago in the waters of Port Hacking, near Sydney. |
| | Fishing the waters of Virginia’s Norfolk Canyon, Chris Boyce of Hampton, Va, USA, guided by Dr. Ken Neill III, landed a snowy grouper (Epinephelus niveatus) on Dec. 9, 2007. The grouper enticed by false albacore for bait weighed in at 29.94 kg (66 lb 0 oz). Boyce is up for an IGFA All-Tackle record which currently stands at 65 lb 8 oz, caught last summer in the same waters. |
| | With Vila Real Santo Antonio, Portugal, as his fishing backdrop angler Luis Ceia, of Faro, Portugal, guided by Eduardo Soares and using sardinha for bait, landed a gilthead seabream (Sparus Aurata) on Dec. 9. The fish weighed 3.21 kg (7 lb 1 oz) and Ceia has applied for a IGFA men’s 8 kg (16 lb) line class world record which is currently vacant.|
| | Fishing the beautiful waters of Rodrigues Island of Mauritius, angler and IGFA Representative for Israel Jean-Jacques Ohayon, Ashdod, Israel, guided by Yann Colas, IGFA Representative for Mauritius, landed a twospot red snapper, (Lutjanus bohar) on Dec. 24. The fish was caught on bonito and weighed 13.5 kg (29 lb 12 oz) for a potential All-Tackle class record. The current record is over 17 years old for a 27 lb 8 oz caught in 1990 in Japanese waters. |
| | Kouki Akeyama, Kirakata-Shi Osaka, Japan, fishing Kushimoto, Japan, landed a red cornetfish, (Fistularia petimba). The fish caught on Nov. 26 weighed 2.5 kg (5 lb 8 oz). Akeyama has applied for an All-Tackle class record that could possibly beat the current record by three pounds for a red cornetfish of 2 lb 5 oz, caught in 2006 in the waters near Shimoda, Japan.|
| | Fishing Content Key, Florida, USA, over the Christmas holidays, Jason Reynolds, of Newark, Del., USA, guided by Capt. Jay Wright Jr., landed a blacktip shark (Carcharhinus limbatus) using 60 kg (130 lb) class line and using cut bait. The fish, caught on Dec. 22, weighed 27.22 kg (60 lb 0 oz). Reynolds released the catch. The line class record is currently vacant.|
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January 2008**_
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| Fly fishing Raritan Bay, New York, USA while using 10 kg (20 lb) class tippet, Joan Sharrott of Staten Island, N.Y., landed a striped bass, (Morone saxatilis) this past November 17. Enticed by a Cowen’s Magnum baitfish patern the fish weighed 12.45 kg (27 lb 7 oz) and took her 15 minutes to land. She was guided by Dale Beacham for the potential women’s tippet record that is currently 1 lb 2 oz, caught June 18, 2006 off Catalina Island, Calif. |
| | Light line fishing nearby Port Canaveral, Scott Lehrmann of West Melbourne, Fla., USA, used a Spro 4 oz jig to land a red grouper (Epinephelus morio). The Nov. 29 catch of the 11.57 kg (25 lb 8 oz) fish on 2 kg (4 lb) class line, took him four minutes to land. Lehrmann is going for a men’s line class record and is hoping to see his name on what is now a vacant record. |
| | With 60 kg (130 lb) class line and a sea cock jig for bait, Mercier Christian, St Marie, on the French Island of Reunion in the Indian Ocean, guided by Colas Yann, landed a dogtooth tuna (Gymnosarda unicolor) on October 25 while fishing Rodrigues Island, Mauritius. The fish weighed 104.5 kg (230 lb 6 oz) and took him 30 minutes to wrestle to the boat. Christian is hoping to break the men’s current line class record of 230 lb caught off La Morne, Mauritius, January 18, 1993. |
| | Two new potential species additions to the World Record Game Fishes book may soon be decided by the IGFA committee after recent fish catches, both in Japan. Fishing Toshima, and using a kneading bait Takashi Nishino, of Kanagawa-Ken, Japan, landed a brassy chub (Isuzumi) (Kyphosus vaigiensis) on November 24, weighing 1.3 kg (2 lb 13 oz). He’s sent in his documentation for a new All-Tackle class record. |
| | The second new potential specie was caught by Chiba, Japan angler Takashi Odagiri, guided by Kazushi Kinjo while fishing Yonaguni Island, Japan, when he landed a frame snapper, (Hamadai) (Etelis coruscans) on Nov. 16. He was using cut tuna for bait to attract the potential All-Tackle class fish that weighed 7.6 kg (16 lb 12 oz). |
| | Fly fishing her hometown waters of Port Sulphur, LA, USA, Susan Gros, guided by Bryan Carter, landed a red drum, (Sciaenops ocellatus) using 8 kg (16 lb) class tippet. She was throwing a voodoo crab fly for the fish that weighed 12.02 kg (26 lb 8 oz) and took 15 minutes to subdue. Ms. Gros is hoping to beat a nearly 10 year old record of 26 lb drum caught off Titusville, Fla.|
| | From the waters of the Atlantic Ocean surrounding Bermuda, Cynthia Mitchell of Devonshire, guided by Andrew Marshall, landed a yellowtail snapper (Ocyurus chrysurus) weighing 3.18 kg (7 lb 0 oz) after a 20 minute fight on Nov. 15. She was using 4 kg (8 lb) class line and a marlin chunk for bait off the Sally Tuckers area near Somerset, Bermuda. She’s hoping to bounce the current 6 lb 8 oz women’s line class record caught off nearby Challenger Bank, June 16, 2004.|
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December 2007:
| Richmond, Va., USA’s William B. DuVal, guided by Joey Dawson, landed an almaco jack, (Seriola rivoliana) on August 21, weighing 24.27 kg (53 lb 8 oz). He was using cut bait while fishing the Challenger Bank in Bermuda and took 35 minutes to land the fish. DuVal’s record is pending in the men’s 10 kg (20 lb) line class. The current record of 49 lb was caught nearby at Argus Bank, Bermuda in 2001. |
| | Hoping to fill a currently vacant IGFA women’s line class record is Theda C. Little, Baton Rouge, LA, USA, who landed a gray snapper (Lutjanus griseus) on Nov. 19. Fishing Leeville, Louisiana, and guided by Chad Billiot, she used 8 kg. (16 lb) line to catch the fish that weighed 2.52 kg (5 lb 9 oz).|
| | A new species entry to the IGFA World Record Game Fishes book may include the name of Larry R. Walker, Colleyville, TX, USA, who landed a blackblotch pompano (Trachinotus kennedyi) on Sept. 18. Walker was fishing Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, using a storm swim shad for bait. The fish took 15 minutes to catch and weighed 11.06 kg (24 lb 6 oz). It will be entered as an IGFA All-Tackle class entry.|
| | Angling the coast of Ocracoke, North Carolina, USA on Nov. 13, Maureen Klause of Ocean City, N.J. USA., used a mullet to tempt a potential record red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus). Guided by Ernest Doshier and using the 37 kg (80 lb) class line, it took Klause six minutes to land the fish which weighed 19.96 kg (44 lb 0 oz). The present women’s line class record is 34 lb 14 oz caught nine years ago off Virginia Beach, Va., USA.|
| | Roberta G. Arostegui, landed a black grouper (Mycteroperca bonaci) while bait fishing Nov. 25 and being guided by Capt. Bouncer Smith off Miami, Florida, USA. Using pinfish for bait on 37 kg (80 lb) class line it took the Coral Gables angler 20 minutes to wrestle the fish which weighed 6.92 kg (15 lb 4 oz). The women’s line class record is currently vacant in the new species category added this past October.|
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