By Joe Cermele

The monkfish (pictured below) is definitely one of the most hideous looking fish in the ocean. But, if you frequent posh seafood joints, you might know that monkfish meat is very expensive and very delicious thanks to its lobster-like texture. It's not unheard of for a recreational angler to reel up one of these beasts while dropping on a wreck, but for the most part, monkfish live in water so deep that a baited hook rarely gets in front of them. Why then are researchers capturing monkfish with tiny seabirds called Dovekies in their stomachs? Because no matter how much you think you know about fish behavior, you don't know everything, and there are no hard-and-fast rules to feeding behavior.

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By Joe Cermele

Yeah, so this is kinda strange. Apparently, New York City-based Youtube personality Joey Boots stumbled upon Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson flyfishing in Central Park. The conversation that takes place during this encounter is part Jerky Boys, a touch of "The Big Lebowski," and a few healthy dashes of awkward. My favorite part is when Joey Boots asks Tucker if he catches his own flies. 

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By Chad Love

Authorities in Minnesota have busted what appears to be a massive gamefish poaching ring that allegedly used nets to haul thousands of pounds of walleye from some of Minnesota's most popular fishing lakes.

From this story on startribune.com: 
Last week, 10 people were indicted in federal court for their alleged roles in a major fish poaching scheme involving the buying and selling of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of walleyes netted from some of northern Minnesota’s most popular lakes. The ten men from northern Minnesota were accused of netting walleyes and other fish from lakes on the Red Lake and Leech Lake Indian reservations and selling them in violation of federal, state and tribal law. The illegal activity allegedly has occurred since 2009 and was widespread. Among the lakes where fish were netted and then sold were Leech, Cass, Winnibigoshish, Red and Six Mile, according to the indictments.

According to the story, in addition to the ten charged last week, 21 more indictments will be handed down today as a result of the three-year investigation of the poaching ring. [ Read Full Post ]

By Chad Love

An Arizona man with one of the coolest nicknames (and personalized license plates) around just hauled in the largest fish ever recorded in the state of Arizona. Appropriately enough for a guy nicknamed "Flathead Ed", the fish was a massive 76-pound flathead.

From this story on azcentral.com:
A Surprise man broke a 25-year-old state record Friday, after he reeled in the biggest fish on record during an overnight outing on Bartlett Lake. Eddie Wilcoxson, or “Flathead Ed” as he’s known to friends, was asleep on his boat at about 2 a.m., when a flathead catfish started pulling on his line, Arizona Game and Fish Department said in a news release. [ Read Full Post ]

By Joe Cermele

When you’re 10 years old, catching a breeder trout is the holy grail of angling achievement. At least that’s how I felt every opening day of the trout season as I was growing up in New Jersey. Many fishermen could catch a limit of average-size stockers on that day, but the ability to catch a breeder seemed to be reserved for the trout angling elite. 

These early-season trophies are large female trout, typically 2 to 5 years old, weighing 3 to 8 pounds, that hatcheries no longer use for egg production. They have served their time, if you will, so they are released into streams and rivers where they become trophies worthy of some serious parking-lot bragging rights. 

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By David Maccar

A fisherman on a trip with two friends to Lake Shestakov in Balarus bled to death after being attacked by a beaver when he tried to get a close-up photo of the rodent.

According to a NY Daily News story, the angler spotted the animal on the side of the road and decided to take a photo. The beaver pounced and bit the man's thigh, severing an artery, which caused him to bleed out.

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