The monster 73.6-pound blue catfish was reeled in by Justin Hodge on Feb. 21, 2026, in Dixie County. It measured 48.5 inches in length with a girth of 36.75 inches.<\/p>\n
Hodge’s historic<\/a> fish broke the previous record set in 2015, when an angler caught a 69.5-pound blue catfish in the Choctawhatchee River in Washington County.<\/p>\n Watch: Rabid Beaver Fought Off After Attacking Several People In New Jersey Park<\/a><\/p>\n According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or Noaa<\/a>, the freshwater fish is native to the Mississippi<\/a>, Missouri<\/a> and Ohio<\/a> River basins, and has been stocked for fishing in nearly 20 states.<\/p>\n The Suwannee River, where the record cat was apprehended, is a more than 200-mile-long blackwater river that runs through south Georgia<\/a> southward into Florida.<\/p>\n A dramatic sunset colors sky and water, silhouetting a fisherman on Florida’s Suwanee River.<\/p>\n (Getty Images)<\/p>\n In Florida, when anglers reel in what they suspect might be a record fish \u2013 the path to the record books is a meticulous one.<\/p>\n When a potential record fish is caught, anglers arrange with the Florida Wildlife Commission<\/a> to have an employee witness the official weigh, on a certified scale and take measurements.<\/p>\n For any fish other than a largemouth bass, a FWC fisheries biologist must certify the species by physically witnessing and inspecting the fish.<\/p>\n With the record officially verified by a biologist, Hodge\u2019s massive blue catfish now stands atop the leader board as the largest of its kind ever caught in the Sunshine State.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/fe29c1147c2af89be5cb3820da5f30e8.jpeg\"\/)
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