Virginia fisherman catches 'extremely rare' blue-mouth fish: 'Wild genetic pigment mutation'
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Yueke
Mon, Jul 8, 2024
PHOTO: Yueke
A Virginia man caught a fish that’s so rare, it was recognized by state wildlife officials.
Retired veteran John Byrd, of Bowling Green, Virginia, reeled in an 11.5-inch blue-mouth chain pickerel from a 14-acre pond, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR).
Chain pickerel inhabit various bodies of water in Virginia, though usually, the species has yellow to green scales, the DWR explained in a blog post on Thursday, July 13.
Photos of the chain pickerel that Byrd caught show the fish appears to have a vibrant blue mouth while its scales were alternating shades of blue, green, and yellow.
"I’d never seen one that color," Byrd told the Virginia DWR in a statement.
He went on to say he’s gone "fishing in that pond for more than 20 years."
Byrd reportedly contacted the Virginia DWR about his catch and got in touch with Scott Herrmann, the agency’s regional fisheries biologist.
Herrmann confirmed that Byrd caught an "extremely rare" chain pickerel with a "wild genetic pigment mutation," according to the Virginia DWR.
"It pretty much falls into the category of catches," Herrmann said in a statement.
"The normal coloration expressed in the green of a chain pickerel is from the xanthins of the yellow pigments," he continued. "Blue pickerel express the rare mutation that is axanthic."
Aside from the color, Herrmann said the pickerel appears to be normal.
Byrd used a Whopper Plopper to catch the rare fish, and he’s planning on keeping his catch, according to the Virginia DWR.
The wildlife agency’s blog notes that chain pickerel are "native" to Virginia and can be found in various bodies of water.
Chain pickerel are a long and slim freshwater fish that have a dark, almost black coloration when they’re young, and then their scales usually turn to a yellow-green as they grow, according to the Virginia DWR.
The species reportedly got its name because they have a "chain-like pattern of black lines" expressed on their bodies.
"Pickerels have fully scaled cheeks and gill covers," the Virginia DWR wrote. "The blue-mouth mutation has been reported in chain pickerel in Maryland and Pennsylvania, but is quite rare."
The Virginia DWR’s chain pickerel information profile states that the "best time" to fish for pickerel is from October to March, when water temperatures are between 55- and 70-degrees Fahrenheit.
The U.S. Geological Survey reports that chain pickerel can be primarily found throughout "the Atlantic slope from southwest Maine to southern Florida," but some have also been found in the Mississippi River basin, upland streams in southeastern Missouri, eastern Texas, and parts of the Gulf Coast.
Retired veteran John Byrd, of Bowling Green, Virginia, reeled in an 11.5-inch blue-mouth chain pickerel from a 14-acre pond, according to the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources (DWR).
Chain pickerel inhabit various bodies of water in Virginia, though usually, the species has yellow to green scales, the DWR explained in a blog post on Thursday, July 13.
Photos of the chain pickerel that Byrd caught show the fish appears to have a vibrant blue mouth while its scales were alternating shades of blue, green, and yellow.
"I’d never seen one that color," Byrd told the Virginia DWR in a statement.
He went on to say he’s gone "fishing in that pond for more than 20 years."
Byrd reportedly contacted the Virginia DWR about his catch and got in touch with Scott Herrmann, the agency’s regional fisheries biologist.
Herrmann confirmed that Byrd caught an "extremely rare" chain pickerel with a "wild genetic pigment mutation," according to the Virginia DWR.
"It pretty much falls into the category of catches," Herrmann said in a statement.
"The normal coloration expressed in the green of a chain pickerel is from the xanthins of the yellow pigments," he continued. "Blue pickerel express the rare mutation that is axanthic."
Aside from the color, Herrmann said the pickerel appears to be normal.
Byrd used a Whopper Plopper to catch the rare fish, and he’s planning on keeping his catch, according to the Virginia DWR.
The wildlife agency’s blog notes that chain pickerel are "native" to Virginia and can be found in various bodies of water.
Chain pickerel are a long and slim freshwater fish that have a dark, almost black coloration when they’re young, and then their scales usually turn to a yellow-green as they grow, according to the Virginia DWR.
The species reportedly got its name because they have a "chain-like pattern of black lines" expressed on their bodies.
"Pickerels have fully scaled cheeks and gill covers," the Virginia DWR wrote. "The blue-mouth mutation has been reported in chain pickerel in Maryland and Pennsylvania, but is quite rare."
The Virginia DWR’s chain pickerel information profile states that the "best time" to fish for pickerel is from October to March, when water temperatures are between 55- and 70-degrees Fahrenheit.
The U.S. Geological Survey reports that chain pickerel can be primarily found throughout "the Atlantic slope from southwest Maine to southern Florida," but some have also been found in the Mississippi River basin, upland streams in southeastern Missouri, eastern Texas, and parts of the Gulf Coast.
A man from Tennessee broke the blue catfish state record for a second time.
The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) confirmed that Micka Burkhart, 44, of Big Rock, Tennessee, caught a catfish that weighed 122 pounds and three ounces.
Burkhart caught the record-breaking catfish from the Cumberland River, and it measured 57.5 inches in length and 42.5 inches in girth, according to a press release issued on Thursday, July 13.
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The TWRA explained that Burkhart caught his latest record breaker on Wednesday, June 28, but the certification and official record process was completed on Tuesday, July 11.
"This whole situation with this fish has been so amazing. It's hard to put into words how I feel," Burkhart wrote to Fox News Digital in a Facebook message on Friday.
"The attention has been a little overwhelming, but I take one day at a time," he continued.
Burkhart’s current record catfish outweighed the 118-pound catfish he caught from the Barkley Reservoir in September 2022 by four pounds and three ounces, according to the TWRA.
Both of Burkhart’s record catfish were reportedly released.
"I'm definitely so grateful that the good Lord blessed me not once but twice with a fish of a lifetime," Burkhart wrote.
Blue catfish are a coastal and inland fish that can be found in many states throughout New England, the Mid-Atlantic, and Southeast, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries.
The NOAA reports that blue catfish have a lifespan that’s typically between nine and 10 years, but some have lived up to 25 years.
On average, blue catfish are less than two feet in length, though some can grow to five feet, according to the NOAA.
In terms of appearance, blue catfish are silvery-blue in color with a white belly, and they have smooth skin that lacks scales, according to the NOAA.
The species can also be identified by their flat dorsal fins, deeply forked tails, and four pairs of black whisker-like barbels around their mouths.
Blue catfish have become a popular game fish because the species has been shown to be "strong," "savvy," and "a good challenge," according to the NOAA.
The world’s largest blue catfish caught on record weighed 143 pounds. It was reeled in from Kerr Lake, located between North Carolina and Virginia, in 2011, according to records kept by the International Game Fish Association, a nonprofit organization that maintains angling records.
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