The N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries recently certified a new state record Red Hind (Epinephelus guttatus).
Christopher Rocci of Morehead City caught the 10-pound, 2.4-ounce fish 45-miles offshore of Beaufort Inlet on July 27.
The previous state record Red Hind weighed 9-pounds, 12.1-ounces, and was caught off Wrightsville Beach in 2023.
Rocci’s fish measured 25.5-inches total length (from the tip of the snout to the tip of the compressed tail) and had a 20.25-inch girth.
The fish was landed using a Penn Ally II rod with an Okuma SLX-50WII reel with squid and pinfish on 80-pound braid.
For more information on state record fish, go to the division’s State Saltwater Records webpage or contact the North Carolina Saltwater Fishing Tournament staff at saltwater.citations@ncdenr.gov.
Download photos of Rocci holding the Red Hind at https://deq.nc.gov/new-state-record-red-hind.