Centuries Old Record-Breaking Rockfish Caught Off Alaska

A record-setting rockfish, believed to be more than two centuries old has been caught by a Seattle insurance adjustor in Sitka, Alaska.

The newly caught fish roamed the waters of the North Pacific when even Antarctica was not discovered (1820)  and when James Madison was the president of the United States, which then had only 18 states. Surprised, it seems Henry Liebman was as stunned to discover that the fish he had caught off  the cost off Alaska was more than two centuries old.

The old aquatic creature was caught by Liebman last week at a depth of 900 feet nearly 10 miles off the coast making it a record setting catch.  The 39.08 pound critter set the record for the largest shortraker rockfish by breaking the previous record of a 38.69 pound fish that was 175 years old.

"I knew it was abnormally big (but I) didn't know it was a record until on the way back we looked in the Alaska guide book that was on the boat," Liebman was quoted in Sitka Senitel.  

Liebman's catch was certified by Troy Tidingco who is Sitka area manager for the state Department of Fish and Game. He was quoted in Daily Mail stating that the previous record setter was a 32 inch guppy, which was around 200 years old and the ancient monster that measures around 40 inches could be substantially older than 200 years.

The samples of the old rockfish have been sent to a lab in Juneau where they will determine the actual age of the fish by counting the number of rings present on the ear bone called otolith.

The oldest animal till date is a tiny mollusc 'Quahog' that was caught in 2007 in the cold Icelandic waters, reports LiveScience.

Leibman plans to mount his prized catch. But his plan has raised a storm on Twitter where people have criticized him for killing the old creature and not returning it to the sea soon after he caught it, reports New York Daily News.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game encourages Alaskan anglers to prevent wasteful rockfish mortality by avoiding waters where unwanted catches are likely to occur. The department also propagates proper deepwater release techniques.

If Leibman had followed these advisories, the old sea creature would probably have gone a long way.

CLICK HERE to have a look at the oldest rockfish ever caught.