June 6, 2006
According
to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection’s Division
of Fish and Wildlife, a new state record grass carp was taken with a
bow and arrow from the Delaware River on May 14. Mark Kronyak of
Middletown caught a 59 pound, 12 ounce specimen that weighed 10
pounds, 9 ounces more than the previous record taken from the
Delaware-Raritan Canal in 1996.
Kronyak was fishing from a boat when he landed the carp with a
Cascade bow. The fish measured 46½ inches in length with a 31½-inch
girth.
The freshwater grass carp, also known as the white amur, is the
largest member of the minnow family and may reach a weight of 100
pounds. A native of Russia and China, the grass carp was brought to
this country in the 1960s to control aquatic vegetation.
In order to manage the unchecked spread of this species, biologists
developed a genetically altered variety known as the Triploid. If
this sterile form were not developed, grass carp would continue to
reproduce and quickly denude their surroundings of all available
vegetation.
Grass carp are a fast-growing, adaptable species that can withstand
water temperatures as low as 32 degrees Fahrenheit (F) to over 90
degrees F. They have a torpedo-shaped body that is dark olive in
color fading to brownish-yellow on the sides with a white belly.
The Record Fish Program honors the largest species of fish caught in
the state. It revolves around a specific list of eligible freshwater
and saltwater species, and is based on weight alone (there are no
line classes). Scale certification documentation and a weighmaster’s
signature are necessary. Other rules apply.
|