Three South African anglers caught a massive blue marlin measuring 3.6 meters off the coast of the Cape Verde islands on May 19.
The vast ocean is home to giant creatures, but not everyone is fortunate enough to catch large fish like the South African fishing team – consisting of Steve Andrews, Ryan Williamson, and Ben Vorster – during their six-day fishing trip to the Cape Verde islands, located over 600 kilometers from the westernmost point of Africa.
Largest Atlantic Blue Marlin caught in 30 years. (Photo: Ryan Williamson)
At 7:30 AM on May 19, just 15 minutes after dropping the bait, Vorster could hardly contain his excitement upon feeling something enormous biting the line and immediately jumped into position to begin the struggle with the creature.
“When it was hooked, the fish didn’t leap to the surface, so we couldn’t confirm how big it was,” Andrews recounted.
Despite being a strong farmer with exceptional fishing skills, Vorster struggled for 30 minutes, with the support of the other anglers, to bring the fish onto the boat. As soon as the creature broke the surface, they realized it was an Atlantic Blue Marlin, one of the largest bony fish species that can grow up to 5 meters in length and weigh 820 kilograms.
The nearly 1-meter wide tail fin of the giant blue marlin. (Photo: Ryan Williamson)
The specimen caught by Vorster’s team measured 3.6 meters in length and weighed approximately 621 kilograms, with its tail fin alone measuring nearly 1 meter wide, making it the largest Atlantic Blue Marlin caught by an angler in 30 years, according to the International Game Fish Association (IGFA).
The IGFA world record for the largest Atlantic Blue Marlin, weighing 636 kilograms, was set off the coast of Brazil in 1992 by angler Paulo Amorim.
