In October, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources announced that George Thompson set a new Iowa state record with a blue catfish caught from the Missouri River.
Thompson caught the monster blue catfish on rod and reel after battling the fish for 35 minutes. The record setting blue cat weighed 105 pounds with an overall length of 60 inches.
The previous 2004 record blue catfish, a 101 pound, 53 inch behemoth, was caught along the same stretch of the Missouri River.
To have the fish certified as the new state record, Thompson kept the fish in a large live well with diffused oxygen while traveling to a certified scale.
After having the fish weighed on certified scales, Thompson released the massive catfish back to the Missouri River.
Missouri River Catfish
Thompson’s new Iowa state record blue catfish was one of several monster catfish that have been pulled from the Missouri River.
Earlier this season, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) certified a new Kansas state record blue catfish. In May, Daniel Mayer caught a 121.1 pound blue catfish that measured 59.75 inches in length. Mayer’s monster catfish was caught on the Kansas side of the Missouri River.
In 2015, Mathew McConkey set a Missouri state record for flathead catfish in the alternative fishing category with a 100 pound fish. The monster flathead was caught using a trotline in the Missouri River.
In March 2015, Burr Edde III caught a Missouri state alternative method record blue catfish on the Missouri River using a trotline. The catfish weighed 120 pounds, 8 ounces, with a length of 55 and 1/8 inches and a girth of 45 inches.
In July 2010, Greg Bernal set a new Missouri state record for blue catfish with a monster fish caught on hook and line from the Missouri River. The fish, measuring 57 inches in length, 45 inches in girth and weighing 130 pounds, was confirmed by Missouri Department of Conservation biologists as the new state record.
The blue catfish is a big river species. The Missouri River population is wild and not stocked.
sources: Iowa Department of Natural Resources, Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks, Missouri Department of Conservation
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