Angler Taylor De Shenk, age 12, caught an impressive 11.79 kg (26 lb) red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) while fishing with her father off Ponce Inlet, Florida, USA on July 25th. The young angler needed 12 minutes to subdue her potential Female Junior record, after it ate the live croaker she was fishing near the bottom. The current IGFA record is 10.97 kg (24 lb 3 oz).
On June 18th, Junior angler Kale’a Patricia Woodard potentially smashed the existing Female Junior record for white seabass (Atractoscion nobilis) with a 26.02 kg (57 lb 6 oz) fish she landed off the coast of Punta Colonett, Mexico. Woodard was drifting a live squid with Capt. Ramon Avila when the fish hit, and after an 8 minute fight, Woodard had the huge seabass bested. The current record is 17.49 kg (38 lb 9 oz).
Angler Richard Hart potentially broke the All-Tackle Length record for bowfin (Amia calva) on July 18th while fly fishing Lake Champlain, Vermont, USA with local guide Drew Price. Hart was casting a custom Bow Regard fly on 6 kg (12 lb) tippet, when the mudfish aggressively hit and proceeded to put up a 15 minute fight. Once subdued, the fish was measured at 73 cm before it was released alive. The current IGFA record is 70 cm.
California angler Daniel Hadawi, age 14, caught a potential Male Junior record California halibut (Paralichthys californicus) on July 1st while fishing out of Santa Rosa, California with Capt. Tucker McCombs aboard the Thermadyne. Hadawi needed 10 minutes to land the massive 24.89 kg (54 lb 14 oz) halibut after it ate the live squid he was drifting. The current IGFA record is 24.2 kg (53 lb 6 oz).
Angler Kevin F. McGrath of Roswell, Georgia, USA, recently returned from the Northwest Territories of Canada where he caught a potential new All-Tackle Length Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus). McGrath was fishing with guide Randy Lauzon on the Kazan River, and caught the fish on August 5th while fly casting a custom “Chernobyl Ant” fly. McGrath needed seven minutes to land the beautiful 48 cm grayling, which was released alive after the proper documentation. The current IGFA record is 45 cm.
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