Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Ok - guess the age of the world record, 92.5 pound, bighead carp. I have an age from scales. Scales lie sometimes, and we will get another estimate from other hard parts later, but I have to say these scales were reasonably easy to read, for such a large fish. I may eat my words later, but I don't think I'm far off at all, maybe a year or two, absolute maximum. I think I have the age pegged, or at most off a year.

Answer the poll, but in your response give an exact number of years.

Before everyone says a product of the 93 floods and direct escapee from aquaculture - let me tell you that story is completely bogus - there may have been some escapes from aquaculture then, but we don't know of any.Bighead carpwere beginning to become abundant in the basin in the 1980s. The first Asian carp that I know of that was captured from the Mississippi River basin was a silver carp captured in the early 1970s. This is not meant to be a hint of any kind as the age of this fish, just some accurate background info so everyone starts from at least that level of knowledge.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Well there goes my theory of it being 15 years old.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

37.

any chance of getting in to see the body?

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I have always heard that big heads grow a pound a month. That should make it 7.6 years old

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I guessed between 16 and 20. I'm thinking 16-17.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

25 - Silly Wild Ass Guess

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I was thinking around 17

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I'm going to keep you guys guessing for a couple days more, and give everyone a chance to guess. Fishhunter - If you can come by tomorrow morning, you could see the fish. We will be dismantling it tomorrow morning. Got it all scheduled. Sorry I can't keep it longer. It IS really a porker. Wow!

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Take lots of pictures Duane!

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Guessing 23 years.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Gotta make sure Darin gets to guess, if he doesn't already know.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Duane, please tell usfirst if it's male or female, because we all know if it's female, it will lie about its age :D

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I've heard that too. But I know that grass carp slow their growth rate as they get bigger.

soooooo I'm guessing 9 years.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I think it was stated once it was a female full of eggs. Yup, that time of month...er, year, it will definitely lie about its age, then ask you if it looks fat.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Now THAT's funny, right there

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

That was a good one Robow7

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Sure we've all heard those female bigheads ask. "Does this arrow in my head make my caudle peduncle look fat?"

On the other hand, I have no idea what you mean about femaleslying aboutour age. I've always been honest about my age... I'm 29 if you must know.

heh.

snort.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I was going to wait on Darin, but I hear he is out for a couple weeks hunting. Does everyone who shoots a world record get a free two-week hunting vacation? Dang - I'm gonna try harder.

Anyway - the fish, according to my read, is 12 years old. 95 was a big reproduction year for bighead carp, so I'm going to look hard for another annulus when I get some better aging structures sliced, but there you have it. The scale was a relatively easy read.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Oh, by the way, the fish was a gravid female, but the eggs were not quite ripe yet. One ovary was so big it over-amped our balance, so we had to go the hanging scale for it. I forgot to ask Joe what it weighed, because we had not weighed it yet when I had to bug out. The other ovary was either the strangest thing I have ever seen inside a fish, or it was full of some bondo-like substancethe taxidermist pumped in. I'll have to find out about that. Weird, grey, clay-like stuff.

The big fish was definately a topic of conversation at my lab - everyone had to come by and see it.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Duane, I understand biological variabitlity within a species but does this mean that many Asian Bigheads can achieve even 70% of this size within 12 years. I mean if that's the case, we should have a bunch of 65 lb fish all over the place and yet I can't seem to break the 45 lb mark.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I guessed 11 or 12. :D

Rob, I don't think bigheads live too long. Maybe there aren't that many over10 years old even out there?? [:-]

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I guessed 12 too.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I'll have to check, but I don't think I have any other 12-year-oldor olderbigheads in my database. But that might be because they have not been in the Missouri River that long - I don't have many fish aged from outside the Missouri. Or because they were not that abundant more than 12 years ago. Time will tell on that. The literature is notvery strong on the maximum age of these fish. Grass carp can be more than 25 years old, though.

Really big fish are often not that old. I read that in the same waterbody where the previous world-record blue cat was from, older fish of less than ten pounds are not unusual. So some fish, in some cases, just grow very big. We are not sure why that is - behavior, genetics, and luck probably play a big part. Very fast growth and survival to an old age are probably inversely correlated, so you have to get one of the lucky fish that beat the odds to get the jumbo. But I do suspect that we'll see more fish in this size class soon.

Oh - and from the pictures, I was wondering if this fish might have been a hybrid. Having seen the fish in person, I no longer suspect that.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

So, Ok How old is it? we have waited lone enough already. Inquiring minds want to know.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

It was 12 years old, according to the scale reading. It was reported on an earlier page of this string.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

The Taxidermist called and said my fish was done, I will put pics up when I get it, between work and hunting, who has time..

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

It'd take me about 3 seconds to make time to go get THAT thing. :D
...right after I rented a bigger truck. :eek:

Can't wait to see it Darin.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

I'll guess 9 years.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Uh, ChZHead - polling is over. Fish was 12 years old according to scales. I don't know how to shut off the poll, though.

RE: Guess the age of Darin's world record fish
 

Ill guess around 12 years give or take...:D