Missouri Fishing Records and Awards

If you are a fisherman you have probably caught yourself thinking, when the fishing gets slow usually, “I wonder what the state record is for a largemouth bass” (of which you probably aren’t catching a lot of at the time).  Or maybe you did catch a monster fish and wondered if it came close or even broke a state record for that species.  I actually work with a guy that swears up and down that he actually caught and ate what he believes was a new state record yellow perch out of Lake Lotawana east of Kansas City, Missouri.  He told me that he found out the next day what the record was for a yellow perch and that it bothers him to this day that he could have been a state record holder.  Well if you didn’t know, the state of Missouri does keep track of that information.  And if you did know, it never hurts to take a look at the record books just in case you land a fish that might be in the ballpark of being a state record.  Here’s the link: http://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/fishing/trophies-certificates/state-fish-record-list .

A screenshot from the records page.

Also, did you know that there is an award given by the Missouri Department of Conservation to individuals that catch a species of fish that meets or exceeds certain length or weight limits?  I’m not sure how these limits were determined, but to see a list of species specific requirements and to download a Missouri Master Angler Award, just go to http://huntfish.mdc.mo.gov/fishing/trophies-certificates/master-angler-award .  The certificates look nice, you can include a picture of your fish on the certificate, and are a nice memento of your catch.  You can hang it on the wall in your office, in your man cave, or even in your garage next to some fishing equipment.  State record qualifying fish have to be weighed on certified scales to ensure accurate measurements which usually results in the death of the fish.  The Master Angler Award is based on the honor system and does not require certified scales or any type of official confirmation.  Master Angler qualifying fish can be measured quickly by an individual after being landed and then returned to the water in order to promote catch and release and the survival of larger fish.

A screenshot of the list of Master Angler requirements that can be found at the aforementioned link.  

Finally, there is a certificate for kids as well.  The First Fish Certificate is offered by the Missouri Department of Conservation and is a little different from the other certificates previously mentioned.  This is a certificated that can be downloaded, customized, and printed from your computer.  It is a .pdf file though and I am not sure how it will interface with different mobile devices so you might want to stick to using a desktop, laptop, or tablet with the necessary software to open and change the form.  Also, if your child caught his/her first fish months or even years ago, that’s alright.  Just backdate the certificate and if you have a picture of the catch, that can be included as well.  If you forgot the date of the catch, most digital photography is stamped with a date so you might try looking there for help.  The address for the kid's First Fish Certificate is: http://mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/10/firstfishkid_2013.pdf .  There is also a First Fish Certificate for adults as well.  You might want to use this if you just recently started fishing or recently introduced someone to our great sport.  Here’s that link: http://mdc.mo.gov/sites/default/files/resources/2010/10/firstfishadult_2013.pdf .

Kid's certificate screenshot

Adult's certificate screenshot