The fish was so large it could not be brought onto the boat, so it was measured in the water ( Facebook/David Edwards )That's a serious catch and release.
A man caught and then purposefully released a massive bluefin tuna off the coast of Cork earlier this year - the kicker being the beast could've been worth €3 Million, reports the Independent.
The giant fish weighed 600lbs (270kg) and measured eight and a half feet long but despite the enormous wealth it could've brought, it was purposefully released.
This is because the crew weren’t out on the water to land tuna for commercial purposes.
In fact they were taking part in a catch and release programme to help establish numbers of the dwindling stock of bluefin tuna.
David Edwards of Courtmacsherry-based West Cork Charters caught the fish three miles south of his base in southern Ireland, and tagged the animal before letting it go.
Speaking to local news outlet Cork News Live, Mr Edwards said: “They are much more common up in Donegal Bay where they follow the herring.
“They are more unusual down here but tend to be much bigger when they do show up.
“This is the first one caught south of Donegal Bay this year and it really was a big fish.”
Writing on Facebook about the successful catch, Mr Edwards said:
“Finally!!! Got the first Bluefin Tuna to be caught, tagged and released on the South Coast of Ireland. 102 inches long is 5-600lb in weight and well done to my crew for the day, Darren O’Sullivan, Henk Veldman and John Dillon, great job lads.”
Responding to a comment asking if the size of the fish was due to “a global warming effect”, Mr Edwards replied: “More of a case of curbing the massive Japanese fleet that was targeting [them] a few years back.”
