Angler Catches Last State Record Fish for Calendar Year 2023
For Immediate Release:
January 3, 2024
Contacts:
Nadia Marji CMP®, Chief of Public Affairs
nadia.marji@ks.gov
Jessica Ward, Communications Manager
Jessica.ward@ks.gov
Angler Catches Last State Record Fish for Calendar Year 2023
SHAWNEE – Great Bend resident, Jason Cavender, is officially in the books as the Sunflower State’s newest (and last) state record holder in 2023 for largest redear sunfish caught. Cavender took the 1.725-pound sunfish with a rod, reel, and worm-baited while fishing Cheyenne Bottoms Sportsman’s Club in Great Bend last fall. The record-breaking catch measured a whopping 12 inches in girth and 12.125 inches long.
Cavender’s catch beats out the previous redear sunfish record set in 1995 by Larry Fox of Scott City when Fox caught a 1.69-lb redear from Finney Wildlife Area that measured 11.75 inches long; though Fox used a jig.
How State Records are Set
Trophy catches such as these end up as a Kansas State Record if:
- The fish is a species recognized on the current list of Kansas state record fish
- The fish is caught by a licensed angler using legal means
- The fish is identified by a Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks district fisheries biologist or regional fisheries supervisor
- The fish is weighed on a certified scale prior to being frozen
- The fish is photographed, in color, and a state record application is filled out
- The mandatory 30-day waiting period has passed.
Click HERE to see a complete list of current Kansas state record fish.
Caught a big fish but not quite a state record? Apply for a “Master Angler Award” and be recognized for your catch if it exceeds the measurements listed HERE.
For more on fishing in Kansas, visit ksoutdoors.com/Fishing.
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