Source maryland.gov. The Maryland record fish list has a brand new species category thanks to Wayne Gower and his extraordinary five-pound, two-ounce gray triggerfish catch. The Baltimore angler landed the fish October 31 while bottom-fishing aboard a charter off Ocean City, drawing the praise of DNR biologists and fellow anglers.
“When I reeled in the fish I could see it was huge compared to the one- to two-pound triggers I’ve caught before,” said Gower.
G
ower was one of about 20 passengers on charter Captain Chris Mizurak’s 65-foot head boat for a trip to the Great Eastern Reef.
“Wayne comes down from Baltimore about a dozen times a year to fish,” said Mizurak. “We were catching mostly sea bass and some bluefish in around 110-feet of water about 20 miles southeast of the Ocean City Inlet. Lately, we have caught some triggerfish in the two- to three-pound range. This one was the biggest I’ve seen.”
Mizurak called DNR Fisheries biologist Steve Doctor to inform him they had a large triggerfish to weigh. The crew met Doctor at the dock where he confirmed the species, and then headed to Sunset Marina where weighmaster Amanda Sprows certified its weight. DNR fisheries biologists agreed that a gray triggerfish of this size in Maryland is rare and deserving of a record.
The New Jersey record is five pounds, 11 ounces. Delaware’s record is six pounds, five ounces. The world record is a 16 pound, nine-ounce beast from Murrells Inlet, South Carolina.
DNR maintains State records for sport fish in three divisions ─ Atlantic, Chesapeake and freshwater ─ and awards plaques to anglers who achieve new record catches. To report a potential record catch, call 443-569-1381 or 410-260-8325. Anglers should keep their fish immersed in ice water to preserve its weight until it can be checked, which can be done at a seafood retailer, a grocery store, or tackle shop with a certified scale.
Fish caught from privately-owned, fee-fishing waters are not eligible for record consideration.