A West Virginia angler recent eclipsed his own state record blue catfish, with an even larger fish.
The new state record fish was caught by Mark A. Foster of St. Albans, W.Va. Foster caught the 43.9-inch, 44.5-pound fish from the Ohio River while using cut bait.
Foster’s catch establishes a new West Virginia record for length and weight. His catch breaks his own 2011 record catch of a 32.28-pound blue catfish. The previous length record was a 42.25-inch blue catfish caught by Lynn Lange in 2009.
Foster also caught a 52.25-inch, 15-pound longnose gar that ties the current length record held by Shelby Searls. Foster caught the gar on the same day from the Ohio River using cut bait. The longnose gar weight record of 19.08 pounds held by Michael Casey still stands.
Anglers who believe that they have caught a state record fish should check the record listing in the 2012 Fishing Regulations brochure. The brochure also outlines the procedure to follow for reporting their catch. This information is also available online at www.wvdnr.gov
source: West Virginia Division of Natural Resources