A 13-year-old boy from Kemmerer, Wyoming, caught a tiger trout from Viva Naughton Reservoir, breaking a state fishing record.
Jaxon Krall caught a 12.77-pound fish that measured 31.25 inches long and had a girth of 16.75 inches, according to a news release from the Wyoming Game & Fish Department (WGFD).
Krall caught the fish using a Thomas floating lure. The previous state record for tiger trout was 11.93 pounds and the fish was caught in the same reservoir.
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“I was fishing for anything that would bite, but I knew when I hooked it that it was big,” Krall said, according to the release.
Jaxon Krall set a new state record in Wyoming for a tiger trout. (WGFD)
Tiger trout are a sterile hybrid of brook trout and brown trout.
Krall’s father, Robert Krall, told Fox News Digital that his son “was very excited when he caught the fish and even more excited when he found out he was the new Wyoming state record holder for tiger trout.”
Jaxon Krall said he’s eager to return to the same reservoir to try to catch another tiger trout, but he wants to release the next one, according to the news release.
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“Viva Naughton is home to a large population of Utah chub, and Game and Fish hoped that the introduction of tiger trout would help reduce the number of Utah chub in the reservoir and bring diversity to the fishery,” WGFD officials said.
Tiger trout are a sterile hybrid of brook trout and brown trout, according to the WGFD. (Travis Lincoln)
Robb Keith, Green River area fish and game fisheries supervisor, said he wasn’t surprised by the tiger trout performance at Viva Naughton.
“We stock a small number of tiger trout to provide anglers with the opportunity to catch an exceptional fish every now and then,” Keith said in the release.
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Keith said he expects the reservoir to continue to breed exceptional fish.
Robert Krall of Wyoming told Fox News Digital that his son, Jaxon Krall, “was very excited when he caught the fish and even more excited when he found out he was the new Wyoming state record holder for tiger trout.” (WGFD/Travis Lincoln)
“We see them mostly close to shore down to 25 feet of water. They are found near structure. They feed on minnows and Utah sculpins, so anglers should choose lures, flies and baits that resemble these forage fish,” Keith said.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to WGFD for additional comment.
