They have different body shapes, yes. But surprisingly, this catch weighed as much as the well-known, massive Great Dane. Discover the largest blue catfish ever caught in North Carolina!
Blue Catfish Overview
Blue catfish are common in North Carolina. They flow into the Atlantic Ocean via the Catawba Rivers and Cape Fear. These fish prefer swift currents and on average, they grow up to 20 pounds and reach 36 inches long. These fish are distinguished by the deep forks in their tails. Their color is usually kind of bluish-gray. However, they get lighter towards their bellies which are white.
Since they interact negatively with native fish in North Carolina, they are invasive in the state. The previous state record for blue catfish caught was held by Joey Baird who caught a 121-pound and nine-ounce blue catfish in Lake Gaston. This record-breaking catch occurred on July 5, 2020. However, in 2021, another angler decimated that previous record with his impressive catch.
Most blue catfish weigh about 20 pounds.
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Largest Blue Catfish Caught in North Carolina
The man who broke the previous North Carolina record for the largest catfish is Rocky Baker. This was a dream come true for Baker who caught the blue catfish in Roanoke River with a fishing rod and reeled it in. He did get some help from his friend Justin Clifton from Clayton when the initially for-pleasure fishing trip turned into quite a feat.
They were out on a 2072 SeaArk during the day and they planned to stay into the evening. Plus, they had already been enjoying a successful fishing trip, having caught a few big fish. They used gizzard shad as bait and at 9:40 PM, they saw the rod move violently. Both of them knew it was time for something even bigger.
Baker is from Four Oaks and he along with his friend also won the Neuse River Wars Catfish Tournament Series in 2020. Although Baker did most of the work during the early evening of July 10, 2021, Clifton helped him get the fish in the boat and later onto a certified scale so that they could determine its final weight. This blue catfish came in at 127.1 pounds.
Largest Blue Catfish Caught in the World
The largest blue catfish ever caught was a whopping 143 pounds. Richard Anderson is the current record holder for the largest blue catfish in the world. He caught it in 2011 from Kerr Lake, which sits at the border between North Carolina and Virginia. This fish measured an astonishing 57 inches long and its girth was 44 inches!
