Today, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources has confirmed that Michael Meade of Upper Marlboro has set a new state sport fish record with a 17.49-pound northern snakehead while fishing with bow and arrow along the marshes of Mattawoman Creek.
From the MD DNR:
“It was about 10:30 at night when I brought it onboard, and it was the biggest snakehead I had ever seen,” Meade said. “When I got home, I stepped on a bathroom scale with the fish, and it was over 17 pounds. So, I put it in a bucket of ice water and went looking for a certified scale.”
The next day in Marbury, Gray Brothers Market Store Manager Stacy Long confirmed the weight on a Maryland Department of Agriculture-certified digital scale. Natural Resources Fisheries Biologist Mary Groves subsequently confirmed the species, making the record official.
World and state fishing records are normally awarded only for fish caught by rod and reel. Maryland makes an exception for three invasive fish species: northern snakehead, blue catfish and flathead catfish.
These species may be caught by any legal recreational harvest method and considered for state record recognition, but only if the fish is dispatched and kept. To report a potential record catch, call (443) 569-1381 or (410) 260-8325. Anglers should keep their fish immersed in ice water to preserve its weight until it can be weighed at a seafood retailer, a grocery store, or tackle shop with a certified scale.
As for the new state record snakehead, Meade says, “I will bake the fillets with pepper and butter, enough for two or three meals, I expect.”
That's what we like to hear. And we've been told that snakeheads are quite tasty when cooked properly.
Thursday, October 22, 2015 - 15:43
Today, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources has confirmed that Michael Meade of Upper Marlboro has set a new state sport fish record with a 17.49-pound northern snakehead while fishing with bow and arrow along the marshes of Mattawoman Creek.
From the MD DNR:
“It was about 10:30 at night when I brought it onboard, and it was the biggest snakehead I had ever seen,” Meade said. “When I got home, I stepped on a bathroom scale with the fish, and it was over 17 pounds. So, I put it in a bucket of ice water and went looking for a certified scale.”
The next day in Marbury, Gray Brothers Market Store Manager Stacy Long confirmed the weight on a Maryland Department of Agriculture-certified digital scale. Natural Resources Fisheries Biologist Mary Groves subsequently confirmed the species, making the record official.
World and state fishing records are normally awarded only for fish caught by rod and reel. Maryland makes an exception for three invasive fish species: northern snakehead, blue catfish and flathead catfish.
These species may be caught by any legal recreational harvest method and considered for state record recognition, but only if the fish is dispatched and kept. To report a potential record catch, call (443) 569-1381 or (410) 260-8325. Anglers should keep their fish immersed in ice water to preserve its weight until it can be weighed at a seafood retailer, a grocery store, or tackle shop with a certified scale.
As for the new state record snakehead, Meade says, “I will bake the fillets with pepper and butter, enough for two or three meals, I expect.”
That's what we like to hear. And we've been told that snakeheads are quite tasty when cooked properly.