A Richwood's angler Andy Belobraydic is holding the record paddlefish he caught recently on Missouri's Table Rock Lake.
Andy Belobraydic, 33, a Richwoods angler, snared Missouri's state record paddlefish on Table Rock Lake on March 21, 2015. His fish, according to the certified scale at the Missouri Department of Conservation's Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery, weighed 140 pounds, 9 ounces, breaking an old record recorded at the lake in 2002 by one pound and five ounces. Belobraydic's fish, which he caught on the James River arm of the lake in Stone County, measured 56 inches in length and had a girth of 43 inches.
It felt like I hooked into a log, Belobraydic said.
Fifteen minutes of work finally brought the giant to the surface and when it was apparent what he had hooked, he remarked that one of his friends turned to him and repeated the famous line from the movie Jaws: Youre going to need a bigger boat.
Belobraydics state-record catch is a product of MDCs paddlefish management, explained Francis Skalicky, media specialist for the Missouri Department of Conservation. Because of changes man-made impoundments have brought to Missouris waterways, the states paddlefish population is no longer self-sustaining. Today, the population is maintained through artificial means by MDC. Each spring, a small number of egg-bearing females are collected from Table Rock Lake and eggs are removed from the fish. The eggs are incubated at MDCs Blind Pony Hatchery and the resulting fry are reared in the hatchery and the young paddlefish are released into Lake of the Ozarks, Table Rock Lake and Truman Lake later in the summer.
"Its an example of how MDC works with the states citizens and for them to sustain healthy forests, fish and wildlife," Skalicky said.
Beginning this year, MDC is conducting a five-year tagging project. This will help biologists learn more about the habits of the states paddlefish and how anglers are enjoying this unique fishing opportunity. Anglers who catch fish tagged with a jaw tag may be eligible for a cash prize. Anglers who catch a tagged fish can send the tag to the Missouri Department of Conservation, 3815 E. Jackson Blvd. Jackson, MO 63755.
For more information about snagging for paddlefish in Missouri and about the states tagging project, go here. Go Back | 
