Contact: Roy Miller, Fisheries, phone: (302) 739-9914
 

State Record Tautog Caught by Dagsboro Fisherman

A Delaware record tautog was caught Saturday, June 18 by Glenn Cave of Dagsboro.
Cave caught the fish while bottom fishing with green crabs about 100 yards off the near wall of Harbor of Refuge Light in the Delaware Bay near Lewes, a spot where the thirty-something angler has been fishing since he was 12 years old.
The saltwater fish weighed in at 21 pounds, four ounces and was 31 inches long with a 23.5 inch girth. The previous state record, caught in 2002, was 19 pounds, 15 ounces. The world record is 25 pounds.
"I knew when I pulled it in that it could be a record," Cave said. "On my scales at home it was 22 pounds so I took it to B&R Tackle in Bethany Beach for an official weigh in. They said it was the biggest tog they'd ever seen. The biggest tog I'd caught before this was about 7 or 8 pounds and we thought that was a big fish." State Parks Ranger Andy Miller certified the catch.
The fish has been filleted and will be providing quite a few meals, Cave said. The carcass has been donated to the Division of Fish and Wildlife for biological sampling.
Cave's new state record doesn't come close to his biggest catch, however – a 700 lb. black marlin that took four hours to land off Costa Rica.
Tautog are a highly prized game fish because of their fighting ability and taste. They have been documented to be long-lived (30-plus years), late-maturing (3-4 years), slow growing and are found around structures such as pilings, rocks and artificial reefs.
The state's Sport Fishing Tournament, which runs from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31 each year, rewards angler skill by recognizing recreational anglers who catch one of 13 freshwater species or one of 23 saltwater species exceeding or meeting a minimum weight for each particular species. There were 1,384 entries in the 2004 tournament.

For more information about the Delaware Sport Fishing Tournament, call the Division of Fish and Wildlife at 302-739-9914.
 

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