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March 12, 2012 Fort Washington, MD - , 27 of Orrtana,
Pennsylvania, caught a whopping 80-pound, 12-ounce blue catfish on
February 23 in the Potomac River near Fort Washington. The Maryland
Department of Natural Resources (DNR) confirmed that the blue
catfish was a new State record, annihilating the previous record
holder by 13 pounds.
“The rod went down hard, and I knew it was something big,” said
Wetzell. “At one point, I was on my knees trying to lift the fish,
and my back was burning.”
The previous record fish weighed just over 67 pounds and was caught
in 2008 by Ron Lewis in the Potomac not far from where Wetzel caught
his fish.
Blue catfish are native to the Mississippi River Valley and were
introduced to the James and Rappahannock Rivers in the 1970s. Since
then, the fish have reproduced and spread throughout the tidal
Potomac River system. Flathead catfish, another non-native invasive
species, and blue catfish have subsequently turned up in the
Nanticoke, Susquehanna and Northeast Rivers, Upper Chesapeake Bay
and other waters.
“We recognize the enthusiasm and economic impact of anglers in
search of record catfish,” said DNR Fisheries Service Director, Tom
O’Connell. “However, we don’t want to encourage the development and
spread of this species. As top predators, they are a serious threat
to native species, which provide ecological and economic benefits to
the region.”
Blue and flathead catfish are invasive, non-native species that are
long-lived, fast growing and opportunistic feeders. Consequently,
State and Federal fisheries managers are concerned about their
affect on the ecosystem, and are working together to develop
strategies to mitigate their impact.
The Chesapeake Bay Program’s Sustainable Fisheries Goal Team, which
includes representatives from Virginia, Maryland, the Potomac River
Fisheries Commission, District of Columbia, National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration National Marine Fisheries Service, and
Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission, recently adopted a
Chesapeake Bay blue and flathead catfish policy to reduce these
catfish populations and to stem their spread. The Chesapeake Bay
Program recently issued a news release on this new policy in
conjunction with National Invasive Species Awareness Week -
Last August, The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission
approved a resolution expressing concern about the impacts of blue
and flathead catfish to Atlantic coast migratory fish species -
asmfc.org.
Anglers should know that it is illegal to transport live blue and
flathead catfish for the purpose of introduction into another body
of water. Additionally, DNR officials are asking anglers to remove
and kill any blue and flathead catfish that they catch. This is a
fishery where the practice of catch and release is discouraged by
resource managers.
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