Man Catches 54 Pound Carp (eat your heart out Bush)

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ERIE, Pa. --Dennis Russian just might have a record catch. On Tuesday, the 59-year-old from New Alexandria nabbed a monster fish -- a 49-inch-long carp that unofficially weighs 54 pounds, 4 ounces.

"That's the biggest fish I've ever seen pulled out of Lake Erie," said Gary Heubel, owner of Poor Richard's Bait and Tackle Shops, when asked to weigh the fish.

If the fish Russian shot with a fiberglass arrow weighs the same on state-approved scales, it would be a Pennsylvania record.

The record for the largest carp caught in the state was 52 pounds in 1962 in the Juniata River, said Dan Tredinnick of the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission.

The state does not rank fish by length or girth, only by weight.

For Russian's fish to be declared a record, it has to be weighed on a certified scale -- those that are inspected by state Weights and Measures officials, Tredinnick said. Such scales are at post offices, butcher shops and grocery stores.

If the fish is heavy enough, Russian has to submit paperwork documenting the catch to the Fish and Boat Commission, which will have a biologist inspect the fish to make sure it is a carp and that there is nothing artificially inflating its weight, such as lead pellets.

"It was really nice to get a record," Russian said. "It was an ugly, yellow-bellied thing. Makes good raccoon bait."

Russian said he planned on taking the carp home, "chop it up and feed it to the skunks and possum. It's good for the ecology."

http://www.boston.com/news/odd/articles/2006/05/10/pa_man_catches_49_pound_49_inch_carp?mode=PF

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