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A father and son's huge alligator gar catch in Alabama has been certified as a new state record.
Keith Dees and his son, Huntley were fishing in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, which feeds into the Gulf of Mexico in the southwestern corner of the state, this past Thanksgiving when they made the record-breaking catch.
The pair have a tradition of going fishing on the holiday and on their latest trip they had already snagged several redfish and largemouth bass. But what happened next surprised both of them with Dees describing the experience as a "day we'll never forget."
"About 11:30 we decided to fish one more spot. I made a cast and about half way back to the boat my chatterbait just went slack," Dees said in a Facebook post. "Reeling as fast as I could, I got it tight just before I saw a big fish swim by my trolling motor. Had no idea what it was until it surfaced after about 30 minutes."
At first, Dees thought he had hooked a redfish, but when the animal finally surfaced the pair realized it was an alligator gar—and a large one at that, measuring around seven feet in length.
"When it comes up, I knew it was big, but I didn't even remotely know it was a state record," Dees told Outdoor Alabama, the official website of the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR).
"That never crossed my mind. I love to cook, so I thought I want to catch this joker so we can eat him," he said. "I've got a bunch of Cajun friends, and they take it and cut it in steaks and blacken it and do medallions. It's just delicious. I'm thinking I'm about to get a bunch of freezer meat."
Alligator gars are among the largest fish in North America, commonly growing up to around 6.5 feet in length and more than 100 pounds in weight, although larger specimens have been recorded.
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The known range of the alligator gar, which is found in the Mississippi River basin, extends from southwestern Ohio, southeastern Missouri, and Illinois, to parts of the Gulf Coast and small portions of northeastern Mexico.
The fish has disappeared from much of its historic range as a result of habitat destruction and indiscriminate culling.
The animal's name refers to its distinctive alligator-like snout and sharp teeth. Alligator gars are often referred to as "living fossils" because their fossil record dates back nearly 100 million years.
Around two and half hours after hooking the alligator gar in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, Dees and his son finally managed to get a rope around the giant fish's head and eventually dragged it into their boat.
"When he hit the boat, we cut up like two schoolgirls, like nobody is going to believe this happened," Dees said.
The pair had the fish officially weighed at Orange Beach Marina with the scales registering at 162 pounds. This is larger than the previous Alabama state record for an alligator gar, which weighed 151 pounds. The latest catch was subsequently certified as a state record by the Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division of the DCNR.
While the father and son did not set out to catch an alligator gar, Dees told Newsweek it was "still a neat experience."
The world record alligator gar was caught in Mississippi, measuring 8 feet, 5 inches long, and weighing 327 pounds.
About the writer
Aristos is a Newsweek science and health reporter with the London, U.K., bureau. He is particularly focused on archaeology and ... Read more