A new Maryland state record white perch (freshwater division) was recently certified by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Service.
On September 5, James Stiars of Baldwin caught a 1.7-pound white perch in the Loch Raven Reservoir, breaking the previous record of 1.62 pounds, also caught in Loch Raven.
“It was my first cast of the day,” he said. “I was using a Shad Rat crank-bait, and I thought I had a largemouth bass on the line. When I saw it was a perch, I knew it could be a record.”
After fishing, the angler stopped on his way home to get the fish weighed on a certified scale. The following weekend he met DNR biologist Keith Lockwood to have the species certified, completing the process and earning him this State record.
Maryland DNR maintains State records for sport fish in three divisions – Atlantic, Chesapeake and freshwater – and awards plaques to anglers who achieve new record catches.
source: Maryland Department of Natural Resources