Angler’s family upset after South Dakota fish record voided

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — The family of an angler whose catfish held a South Dakota record for nearly 70 years is upset that state wildlife officials voided the record.

Roy Groves caught the 55-pound (24.9-kilogram) fish in 1949. The fish originally was identified as a channel catfish, but South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks voided the record Friday, saying Groves actually caught a blue catfish, not a channel catfish.

Groves’ great-grandson, James Labesky, tells the Argus Leader that he had never heard about the record being disputed.

Labesky says in a Facebook post that South Dakota wildlife officials are taking away the record because they don’t think it’s a channel catfish by looking at a picture. He says in the post that his great-grandfather “would know the difference.”

State Fisheries Program Administrator Geno Adams says fish identification experts agreed the photo was of a blue catfish.

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Information from: Argus Leader, http://www.argusleader.com

The Associated Press