The state marine fisheries division has certified a new state record for pigfish.
Jason Edwards of Rocky Mount caught the 2-pound, 12-ounce fish May 23 while fishing on the Capt. Stacy IV in the Atlantic Ocean, about 30 miles southeast of Cape Lookout. The former state record for pigfish was 2 pounds, 4 ounces, and was caught in the Atlantic Ocean in 1991.
Edwards hooked the fish using cut squid as bait on a Penn 66 rod and reel with 80-pound test line.
The pigfish measured 15 ½ inches total length (tip of the nose to the tip of the tail) and had a 14-inch girth.
Two catches tie for the current world record for pigfish. Both fish weighed 3 pounds, 5 ounces, and both were caught in 2011 in New Zealand.
For more information, contact Carole Willis, with the North Carolina Saltwater Fishing Tournament, at 252-808-8081 or carole.y.willis@ncdenr.gov.
Download a photo of Edwards and his catch here.