Angler reels in massive brown trout — and breaks 55-year-old Montana state record
A 55-year-old record has been broken by a Montana angler and the ginormous brown trout he managed to reel in, Montana wildlife officials say.
Robbie Dockter of Conrad managed to snag a beauty that weighed in at 32.43 pounds, which trumped the previous record of 29 pounds set in 1966.
Brown trout fishing has been stocked as a popular sport and is considered challenging to most anglers since the trout tend to be nocturnal, therefore making them more difficult to catch, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
“As for brown trout themselves, the species is far from a Montana native,” said Outsider. “Unlike the North American native rainbow trout, browns are of European descent. According to the history books, the U.S. has the president of the German Fishing society to thank for their North American introduction. In 1883, the U.S. Fish Commissioner sanctioned a New York Angler to obtain brown trout eggs from said German. To this day, one of the few other names attributed to the species is “German trout” due to this original and highly-successful brood.”
In addition, the U.S. National Park Service considers the brown trout “the most valuable exotic fish introduced to North America.”
The previous Montana state record was held by E.H. Peck Bacon.
This story was originally published March 5, 2021 at 5:49 PM with the headline "Angler reels in massive brown trout — and breaks 55-year-old Montana state record."