'So, the struggle was keeping it in a tight spot to tire it out instead of letting it run back and forth, which had it been able to do that, I probably would have lost the fish.' 'They’re very smart, and they have methods of getting off your hook,' Moore said. PADDLEBOARDERS SPOT MASSIVE SUNFISH BENEATH THEM OFF CALIFORNIA COAST He said the muscular fish will intentionally run around snags to break the line. 'The struggle with this fish is that it was not only more powerful than anything I caught up at that point, but it was in an area that was absolutely full of submerged trees and giant rock piles under the water,' Moore said. It fought for about 15 minutes on this line. Efforts to expand protections for these incredible animals is ongoing but in the meantime, should you catch one like this, be sure to release it alive,' Moore said. Alligator gar are a native species that play a key role in their environment. 'Very few fish like this even still exist.

He also used a 100-pound wire at the end of his line to ensure the robust and heavy fish didn’t bite it in half. It is designed for big game saltwater fish like wahoo and small tuna. He was using an 80-pound test line on a trolling reel that resembles a broomstick.

WHY THE FLORIDA KEYS ARE KNOWN AS THE SPORTS FISHING CAPITAL OF THE WORLD He said alligator gar in that river tend to feed on buffalofish because of its substantial population, and mullets are rarer. Moore also switched things up with the type of bait, using the head of a mullet.

'I don’t know if that is a part of the reason why I ended up hooking the fish, but I cast the bait, and it took the bait about five minutes later,' he said. The hotter it is outside, the more active the gar tend to be, but in that particular area, Moore wasn’t having luck following that strategy. Traditionally, that’s been proven to be true. 'The last couple of trips I went out there, I went with the conventional methodology that alligator gar bite the most at the hottest point of the day,' Moore said.

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