By Dave Hurteau & Chad Love

At the conclusion of the first-ever ice-fishing contest on Norway’s Vaagvannet Lake, none of the 66 anglers had caught any fish in the conventional manner. One Jan Petter Johansen, however, did find a couple of stickleback tangled within some seaweed he pulled in. At .07 and .05 ounces each, they won the $770 first and $154 second prizes, respectively.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-ice29.html 

By Dave Hurteau & Chad Love

Only a week after the Indiana Natural Resources Commission approved new rules intended to end high-fence hunts, Rodney Bruce, owner of Whitetail Bluff's shooting preserve, has received a temporary injunction preventing the Department of Natural Resources from shutting him down—that is until his lawsuit challenging the state’s authority to do so is concluded. Speaking with the Associated Press, DNR Director Kyle Hupfer seemed undeterred: "I have no doubt (high-fence hunting preserves) will be shut down. It's just a matter of time."
http://www.thestate.com/mld/thestate/14210875.htm

By Dave Hurteau & Chad Love

This seems to be the year for high-profile bass pro disqualifications. Only a few weeks after Mike Iaconelli was booted from the Bassmaster Classic for an unofficial record-setting second time, Kevin Van Dam has now been tossed from the Elite Series Santee-Cooper Showdown for breaking a boating rule. Van Dam has already release a statement, saying in part:  “I take full responsibility for violating a BASS rule. I did not do it purposely and I did not realize I was breaking any rules.”
http://www.fishingworld.com/News/Read.php?ArtID=000017281

By Dave Hurteau & Chad Love

Last week, we asked whether Mac Weakley’s 25-pound Dixon Lake largemouth is the same fish as the number four and number nine bass of all time, both also caught in Dixon by Jed Dickerson and Mike Long respectively (click here for that story). We also provided a photo gallery for you to compare the fish (click here to view that photo gallery). Most of those pictures, however, did not provide a clear view of what all three anglers say is the bass’s identifying characteristic: a dime-sized black spot near the gill plate.

Now we've found a shot (see above) showing the spot on Long's 9th place fish that proves these three bass were indeed the same creature (click the picture to enlarge it and look for the spot on the lower part of the gill plate).You can see more big bass pics in our new photo gallery of giant Dixon Lake largemouths that was posted to the main site today.