WYOMING – “Just one more cast…please?” pleaded Chris Castleman.
One last cast turned into another and another, as they will with a 14-year-old who’s caught the fishing bug. But that’s not all Castleman caught.
One of those last casts on borrowed time hooked the biggest green sunfish ever recorded in state history.
Give dad the assist for nice one Chris reeled in on a worm and bobber the evening of June 7. Chris and his dad, Allen, knew right away the fish was bigger than the panfish they’d been catching all night at Bryan Stock Trail Pond in Casper. Much bigger.
“Just about four times bigger,” Allen said.
So they doubted it was a panfish but weren’t quite sure what it was. Other anglers at the pond suspected the fish was something special and encouraged the duo “to get it checked out.” That not only included weight, but also species. Neither the Castlemans nor their fellow anglers knew if it was a bluegill, green sunfish or pumpkinseed.
Sportsman’s Warehouse didn’t know either, but the father and son were further encouraged by an employee there declaring, “That’s the biggest panfish I’ve ever seen.”
The next morning Ridley’s Market generously weighed the fish on their certified scale. It came in at 1 pound, 4 ounces. At the Casper Wyoming Game and Fish Department Office, the fish measured 12.25 inches long with an 11-inch girth. It was also officially identified as a green sunfish by Fisheries Supervisor Matt Hahn.
A state record form was filled out and a new record is now on the books. The fish resoundingly beat the former state record caught at the Lovell Ponds in July 2010 by nearly 6 ounces. The world record green sunfish is 2 pounds, 2 ounces. It was caught in Stockton Lake near Springfield, Missouri in June 1971.
“This was a one in a thousand, maybe even one in 10,000 fish,” Hahn said about the trophy fish.
The green sunfish is native to middle America from the Great Lakes to Texas and as far west as Nebraska. It was introduced to Wyoming primarily as forage for bass, but also because it generally cooperates with warm-water anglers.
“Catching a state record was terrific,” Chris said. “One of the best things was being with my dad when it happened.”
Having his state record fish mounted and on the wall will also help him remember the experience.
A state record was the last thing on Chris’ mind that evening, but he was in pursuit of an angling goal—the ‘Pan Pair Challenge’ for young anglers. By catching two of Wyoming’s panfish species, anglers receive a color certificate from the Game and Fish. There are six other youth angling challenges ranging from catching native fish to Wyoming’s most unique game fish. Check out the “Wyoming Youth Fish Challenge” on the Game and Fish website for more information.
Reflecting his zeal for angling, Chris says, “I hope to get all the (fish) challenges in time.”
