93lb Asian Carp caught in Lake Rathbun IA

[Larbo]

This news makes me sick...

Message forwarded from Mark Flammang, Iowa DNR Fisheries:

Ladies and Gentlemen:
This afternoon I had the dubious responsibility of verifying a new
state record bighead carp. Given all the attention Asian carps are
receiving as of late it's clear this is one group of fish where it
never pays to be the first to report a sighting or a big catch. I
also understand that we no longer recognize state records for Asian
carps but this one just speaks volumes when you see it. The
particularly troubling piece of information was the source of this
fish. It was captured by Larry Sparks on June 15 out of LAKE RATHBUN.
Larry was tossing a rattletrap and snagged into this monster off of
the Island View handicap accessible pier. The weight was verified by
Burell's meat Locker in Moravia Iowa this afternoon and the final
weight was 93 lbs 8 oz and was 56 inches long. That shatters the
previous record of 79 lbs 3 oz. Interestingly, they dropped the fish
and the head broke off there was simply so much mass involved. The
fish was a gravid female. Larry is an avid angler and he understands
the repercussions of such a collection. This is not the first report
we've had over the years of bighead or silver carp in Rathbun, but
it's the first one verified by a specimen. Chad Dolan has provided me
contact information for someone who is willing to help us age this
behemoth and they are also interested in tissue samples for genetic
study. The fish currently resides in the Rathbun Hatchery walk-in
freezer.

[Burr]

Pictures in post 15

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