Adairsville angler catches state-record longnose gar on Coosa River
Mar. 23—ROME — Georgia anglers are on a roll. Within the last four months, three new state records have been caught.
The latest state record fish is a longnose gar, caught by Rachel Harrison of Adairsville. Her catch, caught on March 19 on the Coosa River near Rome, weighed 31 pounds, 2 ounces, and replaces the 2013 record of 30 pounds, 13 ounces, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Wildlife Resources Division.
"Congrats to Rachel Harrison!" Scott Robinson, chief of fisheries for the Wildlife Resources Division, said. "State records do not get broken every day, so for Georgia to have three new records in this short time span just shows you that our waters are producing great fish right now. Who will catch the next one? It might be you — but you have to get outdoors and Go Fish Georgia."
Longnose gar (Lepisosteus osseus) are members of the gar family and are considered relics from a large group of primitive fishes. Longnose gar have an elongated body, are greenish black on top and yellow toward the belly. They have black spots along their sides and fins. A long, narrow snout contains many sharp needle-like teeth. They prefer weedy areas of deep or shallow lakes and streams. Gar feed primarily on other fish.
Georgia anglers support fisheries conservation with license purchases, which allow Georgia WRD to continue to do important research, maintain and operate public fishing areas and more. Anglers may purchase a Georgia license at www.gooutdoorsgeorgia.com.
For fishing tips and information, check out the Angler Resources page at https://georgiawildlife.com/fishing/angler-resources.
Information about state-record fish, including an application and rules, can be found at https://georgiawildlife.com/fishing/recordprogram/rules or in the current Sport Fishing Regulations Guidebook.
