A monster blue catfish caught in Mississippi with a rod and reel has smashed the state document by virtually 40 kilos.

Angler Eugene Cronley caught the 131 pound fish on April 7 within the Mississippi River close to Natchez.

It took him 40 minutes to land the monster, with a rod and reel and a skipjack herring as bait, the Mississippi Division of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks Fisheries stated in an announcement.

Cronley advised the Division it was "actually a fish of a lifetime."

The ginormous blue catfish broke the earlier "rod and reel" document set in 2009 by Dakota Hinson, who caught a 95-pound catfish. It was additionally bigger than the trophy document, caught by Freddie Parker and Brad Smith in 1997, which weighed 101 kilos.

monster catfish
Monster catfish breaks Mississippi state document. The fish was reeled in by Eugene Cronley on April 7. Mississippi Division of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks

All these titan catfish have been caught in the identical a part of the Mississippi River, the Division of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks Fisheries stated.

Blue catfish could be discovered round Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio and Rio Grande. They've been launched to different areas in recent times purely for fishing functions.

The species are a well-liked catch the world over due to their measurement. It's a significantly onerous fish to reel in, attributable to its energy and savviness, that means they're typically thought to be a prize catch.

Blue catfish can develop as giant as 5 ft lengthy and the bulk don't exceed weights of greater than 100 kilos. They usually stay for about ten years, nevertheless there have been experiences of some residing till 25.

Cronley advisedThe Clarion Ledger that when he felt the pull on his rod, at first, he was unable to maneuver the fish. At this level, he knew the fish was huge nevertheless didn't think about it could be 131 kilos.

"We catch quite a lot of 50-pounders down there and I knew he was greater than that. We did not know till we pulled him up. We knew then we had a monster," Cronley advised The Clarion Ledger.

Monster catfish
The fish took Cronley 40 minutes to reel in Mississippi Division of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks

When Cronley lastly received the battle, he stated he might hardly carry the fish onto the boat. "I used to be wore out," he advised The Clarion Ledger.

Cronley stated holding the state document nonetheless appears unimaginable. He has been fishing for catfish his entire life, he advised the newspaper, however he had "by no means dreamed" of one thing like this.

The fish was 4.7 foot lengthy, and had a girth of 41 inches, The Clarion Ledger stated.

Cronley stated the photographs of the catch doesn't actually seize its monstrous measurement.