RALEIGH, N.C. (May 15) - After dropping the minimum weight requirement on the channel catfish state record category earlier this year, the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission announced today that John Davinson has reeled in the new state record with his catch of a 16-pound channel catfish from the Roanoke River.
Davinson, of Clayton, caught his record-breaker on April 19, using a Shimano rod and reel combo and a golden shiner minnow. The fish measured 32½" in length and 19½" in girth.
The fish was weighed on certified scales at Atlas Fish Market in Roanoke Rapids and was verified as a new state record by Kirk Rundle, a fishery biologist with the Commission.
To qualify for a state record, anglers must have caught the fish on a hook and line, must have the fish weighed on a certified scale witnessed by one observer, have the fish positively identified by a qualified expert from the Commission and submit an application with a full, side-view photo of the fish.
For a list of all freshwater fish state records in North Carolina or more information on the State Record Fish Program, visit the Commission's Web site,
www.ncwildlife.org.