R.I.P. Jaws

[Ogre]

Enormous great white shark hauled up by Sea of Cortez fishermen
By: Pete Thomas, GrindTV.com

Two commercial fishermen in Mexico received the surprise of a lifetime Sunday when they hauled up a great white shark measuring nearly 20 feet and weighing about 2,000 pounds, according to local news reports. The rare catch of such a large white shark -- at 20 feet it'd be among the longest ever recorded -- was made in Mexico's Sea of Cortez near Guaymas, by fishermen who thought they had merely scored a large haul of much smaller fish as they hoisted up their net.



"We were amazed and immediately realized that we had a huge, dead, great white shark, and then we thought what are we going to do?," Guadalupe, one of the fishermen, said in an interview with Pisces Sportfishing, which is located in the Baja California resort city of Cabo San Lucas. The other fisherman was named Baltazar.

The shark was dead when it was brought to the surface. The fishermen, whose skiff measures 22 feet and is powered by a 75-horsepower outboard, required an hour to tow the carcass two miles to the coast. About 50 people helped drag the behemoth onto dry sand. Milenio News reported the length of the fish to be six meters, or 19.8 feet.



"Guadalupe and Baltazar swore they had never seen a fish this big before in their lives," the Pisces blog stated. "Even though on March 13 of this year, some of their fellow fishermen had also caught a great white, which had weighed 990 pounds."

It remains unclear what the fishermen did with the shark, but scientists were hoping to obtain tissue samples for study.

Adult white sharks were once believed to be infrequent visitors to the Sea of Cortez, or Gulf of California. But it's now believed that parts of the gulf serve as a nursery for the species.

"While it's unusual that fishermen will land sharks that large, the occurrence of large adult white sharks is not uncommon for Gulf waters," said Christopher Lowe, a Southern California white shark expert who has conducted extensive tagging studies involving the species. "In fact, several satellite tagged sharks from California and Guadalupe Island [west of Baja California] have traveled into the gulf. So we know they are there."

While in gulf waters, adult white sharks are believed to prey largely on Humboldt squid and sea lions

[AU_Tiger_2000]

When I saw the header I though that Richard Kiel had passed away.

[CCTAU]

While in gulf waters, adult white sharks are believed to prey largely on Humboldt squid and sea lions

And now, little Mexican men in 22 foot boats. The word is out.

[Snaggletiger]

That is one big ass fish.  I love the ocean but there's some mighty evil things lurking beneath the surface.  Not evil, but saw a report yesterday where a guy caught what would have been a world record yellowfin tuna...somewhere around 460 pounds if memory serves...but the record was disallowed because one of the other fishermen admitted to touching the rod.  Not HIS rod....the fishing rod.

[chinook]

That is one big ass fish.  I love the ocean but there's some mighty evil things lurking beneath the surface.  Not evil, but saw a report yesterday where a guy caught what would have been a world record yellowfin tuna...somewhere around 460 pounds if memory serves...but the record was disallowed because one of the other fishermen admitted to touching the rod.  Not HIS rod....the fishing rod.

saltwater fishing's version of baseball's infamous pine tar incident, an angler who reeled in a world-record yellowfin tuna had his home-run catch called back -- because a deckhand touched his fishing pole as he fought the mighty fish.

Robert Pedigo hooked the 427.9-pound fish last Thursday and fought it for a half-hour before bringing it aboard the "Journeyman." But everyone on board agreed that Danny Osuna, a local captain working that day as a deckhand, blew the record by touching Pedigo's pole during the battle between man and beast off the coast of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The rules say an angler can't have any help pulling in a fish if he or she wants to make history.

"I do this for a living and we're really hardcore fishermen," Osuna told FoxNews.com. "We have caught a lot of fish in the high 300s, but this is the first time we've caught something like this."

Osuna admitted touching Pedigo's fishing rod, disqualifying the catch from consideration by the International Game Fish Association. But he said Pedigo, who could not be reached for comment, isn't too broken up about the technicality.

"We're fine with that," Osuna said. "Actually, we never even thought the fish would be that big."

Osuna said everyone who was in on the fishing trip got a big meal out of the monstrous catch before the rest was given away.

"We never sold the fish," he said.

Like the famous home run by George Brett in 1983 that was disqualified when Yankees Manager Billy Martin pointed out that the Kansas City Royals' slugger had pine tar smeared too high on the barrel of his bat, the pole touch indeed disqualifies the catch, according to IGFA officials.

    "I do this for a living and we're really hardcore fishermen."

- Danny Osuna, deckhand aboard the 'Journeyman.'

A spokesman for the agency confirmed to FoxNews.com that the all-tackle record for yellowfin tuna remains 405 pounds, caught by Mike Livingston near Baja Sur, Mexico -- because Osuna touched the rod.

"No one (to my knowledge) has been contacted by the angler or any member of the crew in regards to this catch," IGFA World Record Coordinator Jack Vitek wrote in an email. "We have heard of the catch on various fishing forums and websites, and are pleased to hear that the angler and crew are being up front about such an impressive catch, and are respecting the IGFA rules."

   

[Snaggletiger]

Like I said, somewhere around 427.9 pounds. 

I've caught a bunch of sailfish over 100 pounds.  They pull like a mofo for a short time, put on a show and give up the fight.  The snapper I caught last summer at 30 pounds pulled much harder and fought a good bit longer.  I can't even imagine hooking up to a 400+ pound fish. Anyone ever tied into a Marlin?

[Pell City Tiger]

LikeAnyone ever tied into a Marlin?

I have not.

I heard a story once about a girl, local gal as I recall, who was invited along on a deep sea fishing trip with 5 guys. She came back with a red snapper.

[Vandy Vol]

I heard a story once about a girl, local gal as I recall, who was invited along on a deep sea fishing trip with 5 guys. She came back with a red snapper.

So...she came back on her period?