Fisherman catches record longnose gar in Lake Champlain
A man fishing for channel catfish on Lake Champlain hooked a New York record for longnose gar, a needle-nosed fish considered a living dinosaur.
A man fishing for channel catfish on Lake Champlain hooked a New York record for longnose gar, a needle-nosed fish considered a living dinosaur.
A man fishing for channel catfish on Lake Champlain hooked a New York record for longnose gar, a needle-nosed fish considered a living dinosaur.
The Department of Environmental Conservation said Michael Gatus, of Hoosick Falls, caught the 14-pound, 10-ounce longnose gar using chunk bait in South Bay in Whitehall last month.
The fish broke the 1999 state record by more than 1 ½ pounds.
Longnose gar are long, slender fish with a needle-like snout filled with rows of teeth.
They're found in shallow, weedy areas, primarily in the St. Lawrence and Niagara rivers, Lake Champlain and eastern Lake Ontario.
The fish was the third record-breaker caught in New York so far this year.
The others were a 4-pound black crappie and an 18-pound walleye.