A 25-year-old fish was just found flopping around West Okoboji Lake, Iowa DNR officials report.An Iowa Great Lakes fisheries netting crew made the discovery last week."It is amazing that this male musky is alive and doing well in West Okoboji Lake 25 years later," said Joe Larscheid, chief of the Iowa DNRs Fisheries Bureau in a news release.Officials said the fish was purchased by the Upper Great Plains chapter of Muskies Inc. in 1991 and stocked into West Okoboji Lake in April 1992 at an average length of 12.7 inches."Every muskellunge stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes was batched marked with a freeze brand so we know what year and lake it was stocked," said Larscheid.The 41.6 inch, 17.5-pound fish was originally tagged in 1994 and was recaptured in 1998, 2000 and 2006. It is one of the first groups of muskies held over the winter at the hatchery then stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes in the spring."To my knowledge, this fish is the oldest known age muskellunge ever recaptured by fisheries crews in the Midwest,” said Jonathan Meerbeek, DNR fisheries research biologist. "Recapturing a 25-year-old fish of known age is almost unheard of."

A 25-year-old fish was just found flopping around West Okoboji Lake, Iowa DNR officials report.

An Iowa Great Lakes fisheries netting crew made the discovery last week.




"It is amazing that this male musky is alive and doing well in West Okoboji Lake 25 years later," said Joe Larscheid, chief of the Iowa DNRs Fisheries Bureau in a news release.

Officials said the fish was purchased by the Upper Great Plains chapter of Muskies Inc. in 1991 and stocked into West Okoboji Lake in April 1992 at an average length of 12.7 inches.



"Every muskellunge stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes was batched marked with a freeze brand so we know what year and lake it was stocked," said Larscheid.



The 41.6 inch, 17.5-pound fish was originally tagged in 1994 and was recaptured in 1998, 2000 and 2006. It is one of the first groups of muskies held over the winter at the hatchery then stocked in the Iowa Great Lakes in the spring.



"To my knowledge, this fish is the oldest known age muskellunge ever recaptured by fisheries crews in the Midwest,” said Jonathan Meerbeek, DNR fisheries research biologist. "Recapturing a 25-year-old fish of known age is almost unheard of."