CONTACT:
Don Miller: 603-744-5470
Jane Vachon: 603-271-3211
October 1, 2009
Two State Record Tautog (Blackfish) Caught in New Hampshire this Year
CONCORD, N.H. -- The record for the biggest tautog, a saltwater species also known as blackfish, was broken twice in succession this year in New Hampshire.
"Catching a record-breaking fish is always exciting, but in this case a saltwater record that had stood for more than a decade was broken twice in four days," said Don Miller, a fisheries biologist for N.H. Fish and Game who monitors the state's trophy fish and record fish programs. The previous record tautog for New Hampshire was a 3 lb.-12.48 oz., 18.25-inch-long fish caught in Great Bay in June of 1999.
This year, angler Graham Oakes, age 21, of Derry, N.H., beat the record with a 4 lb.-3.8 oz. fish that stretched to 19.25 inches. Oakes caught the fish at Hampton Beach on July 16 using clams with a Carolina rig.
In a surprising twist, the new record was surpassed four days later on July 20 by angler Roland Groux, age 33, of Hampton, who, while baitcasting in Hampton Harbor, hauled in a tautog that tipped the scales at 8 lbs.-10.08 oz. and measured 21.75 inches long.
"Congratulations to both of these record-title anglers," said Miller. "Their amazing catches are now part of New Hampshire's official record fish history."
For more information on New Hampshire's state record fish, visit www.wildnh.com/Fishing/NH_state_record_fish.htm.
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