143-pound blue catfish beats world record by 13 pounds

It took Nick Anderson 45 minutes to reel in the monster catfish he snagged at Kerr Lake, a 143-pounder that will probably be a new world record.

The record isn't official, but if 29-year-old football coach from Greenville, N.C., captures it, he will have shattered the old mark for blue catfish, easily passing the 130-pound whopper pulled out of the Missouri River last year.

"My dad netted him by the head, my brother grabbed the tail and I grabbed his body," Anderson said. "We were just shocked."

Anderson hooked his fish just before dusk on Saturday just over the Virginia line, where the John H. Kerr Reservoir is known as Buggs Island Lake. It measured 57 inches long, just shy of 5 feet, and 43.5 inches around.

He won't reveal his bait choice beyond a "family secret," nor his tackle beyond a "rod and reel," but the Virginia weekly Mecklenburg News-Progress listed his gear as an "Ugly Stick" rod with a Shimano reel and 30-pound test line.

For now, the State Record Fish Committee of the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries is reviewing the application for a new state record, which would beat the 109-pound behemoth caught in the same lake in March.

"Everybody is really excited," spokesman Lee Walker said. "Blue cats are considered one of the top game fish out there. There's a huge following. There's a tournament circle. This will bring national headlines."

It should be an easy jump to the world mark, certified by the International Game Fish Association.

"That's a lot of weight to break a record by," Walker said. "Normally, when you see new world records, it's by an ounce or a tenth of an ounce."

Blue catfish are not a native species, and their growth varies wildly depending on food and temperature, said Wayne Starnes, curator of fishes for the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences. He guessed a blue cat that large would be about 20 years old. (Raleigh) News & Observer staff writer Josh Shaffer

S.C. deer harvest decreases in 2010

An annual survey conducted by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources indicates that the statewide harvest of deer in 2010 totaled approximately 222,650, a decrease of 4 percent from the previous year.

Included were 116,755 bucks, according to Charles Ruth, the agency's Deer and Wild Turkey Program coordinator.

Since 1997, DNR's Wildlife Section has employed an annual random mail survey to estimate the harvest of deer at the state and county level. This year's survey was sent to 25,000 hunters. Observer News Service

Tagged loggerhead recaptured

Thirteen months after being released back into the Atlantic Ocean after a successful rehabilitation at the South Carolina Aquarium's Sea Turtle Hospital, Scute, a loggerhead, was recently recaptured.

The Lady Lisa and her crew caught Scute off Kiawah Island during a regional trawl survey managed by the S.C. Department of Natural Resources. Between release and recapture, Scute's weight increased from 102 to 127 pounds and the length increased almost 11/4 inches, a normal growth rate for a juvenile loggerhead this size.

Scute is only the third sea turtle to be recaptured following successful rehabilitation and release by the Aquarium. ONS

Angler fishes 1,100th N.C. trout stream

Dedicated fly fisherman Bobby Kilby of Pawley's Island, S.C., fished his 1,100th N.C. trout stream, where he caught six rainbows in Mill Branch in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

The stream was also No. 2,000 overall for the Wilkes County native. Kilby's self-imposed rule is that he must catch a minimum of two trout from a stream to add it to his life list. And, since May 13, he's added 10 more N.C. streams. Jack Horan

Catches of the week

A 16-inch flounder at Oak Island Pier by Avery Oxendine, 12, of Mint Hill.

A 5.2-pound Spanish mackerel at Oak Island Pier by Camden Johnson of Mint Hill.

A 68-pound cobia off Ocean Isle by Sten Hollingsworth.

A 17-inch flounder in the Ocracoke Island surf by Jackie Smith of Salisbury.

Red drum of 47 and 42 inches, respectively, by Pennsylvanians Zech and Walter Medved, fishing in Ocracoke Inlet with guide John Ferrara aboard the Fish Tale.

A 36-inch bluefish at Oregon Inlet's Bonner Bridge by local angler Jason Rawlings. He was baiting with Bass Candy Delight on a 1-ounce jighead.

An 8-pound puppy drum in the surf at the west end of Oak Island by Bruce Griffin Jr.

A blue marlin boated and released off Georgetown, S.C., by Jane Wilson. She was trolling from the OH-NO, skippered by her husband, Phil.

Fifteen lunker spadefish, including a 10-pounder, by a party fishing out of Georgetown Landing Marina with guide Max McMillan aboard the Critter Gitter.

A 7-pound lake trout, or steelhead, at Fontana Lake by Jay Jenkins of Stecoah, while fishing at the dam at night.

Thirty-one very big bream at Union County's Lake Lee by local angler Willie Smith.

A 35-pound dolphin off Hatteras Village by William Wilson of Mount Airy while trolling from the Finseeker.