Feb. 11, 2013
Photo Credit: (TPWD Photo © 2013, Nathan Reynolds)
Caption: Isacc Denson of Monahans
caught Toyota ShareLunker 541 from Falcon International Reservoir on February
7. The fish was 26.5 inches long and 20 inches in girth
ATHENS—Falcon
International Reservoir joined the Toyota ShareLunker action on Thursday,
February 7, with a 13.4-pound entry into the ShareLunker program.
Isaac
Denson of Monahans was fishing in two to three feet
of water when the big bass hit about 11:30 a.m. The fish was 26.5 inches long
and 20 inches in girth.
The
fish was weighed and held for pickup at the official Toyota ShareLunker Weigh
and Holding Station at Falcon State Park. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
staff from the A.E. Wood State Fish Hatchery in San Marcos picked the fish up
and took it to San Marcos, where it is awaiting the results of DNA testing.
If
the fish is pure Florida largemouth, it will be taken to the Texas Freshwater
Fisheries Center (TFFC) in Athens and held for spawning; otherwise, it will be
returned to the lake as quickly as possible.
The
fish is the fifth entry of the season into the Toyota ShareLunker program,
following entries from Lakes Austin, Fork (two entries) and Dunlap.
The
largest entry of the season to date is Richard Scibek’s
16.04-pounder caught from Lake Fork on February 2. The angler who catches the
largest entry of the season is named Angler of the Year and receives a prize
package from G. Loomis consisting of a G. Loomis GLX854C jig and worm rod, a
Shimano Chronarch 200E7 casting reel and a spool of Power Pro super-braid
fishing line. If the Angler of the Year is a Texas resident, he or she also
receives a lifetime fishing license.
Anyone
legally catching a 13-pound or bigger largemouth bass from Texas waters, public
or private, between October 1 and April 30 may submit the fish to the Toyota
ShareLunker program by calling the ShareLunker hotline at (903) 681-0550 or
paging (888) 784-0600 and leaving a phone number including area code. Fish will
be picked up by TPWD personnel within 12 hours.
ShareLunker
entries are used in a selective breeding program at TFFC in Athens. Some of the
offspring from these fish are stocked back into the water body from which they
were caught. Any lake producing an entry into the program receives a share of
the fingerlings, whether the fish from that lake spawns or not. Anglers who
enter fish into the program receive a free replica of their fish, a certificate
and ShareLunker clothing and are recognized at a banquet at TFFC whether their
fish spawns or not.
For
complete information and rules of the ShareLunker program, tips on caring for
big bass, a list of official Toyota ShareLunker weigh and holding stations and
a recap of last year’s season, see http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/sharelunker.
The site also includes a searchable database of all fish entered into the
program along with pictures where available.
Information
on current catches, including short videos of interviews with anglers when
available, is posted on www.facebook.com/sharelunkerprogram.
The
Toyota ShareLunker Program is made possible by a grant to the Texas Parks &
Wildlife Foundation from Gulf States Toyota. Toyota is a long-time supporter of
the Foundation and Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, providing major funding
for a wide variety of education, fish, parks and wildlife projects.
News Release – Media Contact:
Larry Hodge, 903-676-2277, larry.hodge@tpwd.state.tx.us