5 days ago
Massive rockfish, of world-record size, finally meets its match
The catch of a giant shortraker rockfish this month off Alaska is a pending world record.
The brightly colored fish, landed by Glenn Krieger out of Elfin Cove, weighed 44.8 pounds on a digital scale. The current world record, set in Cross Sound, Alaska, in 2017, stands at 44 pounds, 1 ounce.
News of the recent catch, announced by Tanaku Lodge via Instagram, garnered mixed reactions.
'You probably killed something older than any human on the planet,' one follower noted.
'There's a chance this fish is over 150 years old,' another person observed.
Such remarks stem from the fact that shortraker rockfish boast an extraordinary lifespan.
According to NOAA Fisheries, shortraker rockfish are 'believed to be one of the longest-lived of all fish in the northeast Pacific, and some individuals may reach a maximum age of [more than] 120 years.'
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All of this aside, fishing for rockfish is legal in Alaska. Anglers can keep one per day and have two in possession.
Krieger was also congratulated by Tanaku Lodge followers, and once the International Game Fish Assn. reviews his catch details he could be granted a world record.
That process, however, can take months.
