It took 10-year-old Travis Crull of Charleston only five minutes to reel in the first South Carolina state record tautog and to become the youngest state record holder in South Carolina. Crull's 5-pound, 4-ounce saltwater fish was caught on March 23 while bottom fishing in 90 feet of water off Charleston.
"The tautog fought like a red porgy, so it was an intermediate fighter, but it pulled quite a bit and tired out fast," Crull said. "When we first got it up, we didn't know what it was. We asked other boats nearby and they didn't know either."
Everyone who Crull's father talked to thought that the tautog looked like either a sheepshead or a black drum with a lip problem. Its lips look almost human-like and are soft, so the fish is hard to hook. The Crulls took the fish to the S.C. Department of Natural Resources' office in Charleston, where it was identified as a tautog by marine biologist Tom DuPre', who said it could be a new state record. "The tautog had been eligible since the record program began in 1968, but Crull's was the first application received," said DuPre', who coordinates the state marine records program for the S.C. Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
Crull caught the tautog by the Gardens, a reef that is about 26 miles offshore of Charleston near Comanchee Reef. He was using squid tentacles and a finger mullet head as bait.
Crull was excited to learn that he was not only a state record holder, but also the youngest in the state to hold a record. "I told my teacher Mrs. Visconti, and my best friend Donte Burns about the tautog, and they were amazed because I'm young to be a state record holder," Crull said.
"Catching a state record fish made me feel excited," Crull said. "The certificate is on its way to the Governor's office and I'm looking forward to him signing it and getting it in the mail. That's cool."
Crull is a fifth grader at West Ashley Intermediate School, and turned 11 on April 16. "Fishing takes a big role in my life, and I think it's really fun," he said. "My aunt can't fish because she doesn't have patience, and you usually need a lot of patience."
Crull, his father and often their neighbor go fishing about once a month in the winter, but in the summer they go every week. "I think I'll fish a lot more when I get older because I'm saving up for a nice boat," Crull said. "I'm going to try to get a 30-foot Contender and I have saved about $200 by mowing lawns."
Crull's tautog was weighed at Barton and Burwell Fishing Supply, and was verified by DNR marine biologist Marcus Drymen.
Many people in South Carolina are unfamiliar with the tautog. Mike Arendt, a DNR marine biologist, conducted his thesis work on this species at the College of William and Mary/Virginia Institute of Marine Science. Fishermen target the tautog around structures such as pilings and wrecks. "Because tautogs have been documented to be long-lived (30-plus years), late-maturing (3-4 years), slow-growing, and have predictable local distributions, they are especially vulnerable to over-fishing," Arendt said.
Tautogs are rare south of Cape Fear, but they have been observed as far south as Gray's Reef near Savannah. Tautogs are relatively abundant from Virginia through New England, and are considered to be a highly prized game fish for their fighting ability and taste.
All potential marine state record fish must be weighed on state-certified scales and verified by two witnesses. Record fish must be caught using conventional rod and reel and must be hooked and played by one person only. All entries must be inspected and verified by a DNR marine fisheries biologist.
To establish a new state record, an eligible saltwater fish weighing less than 50 pounds must exceed the old record by four ounces. A fish weighing more than 50 pounds but less than 100 pounds must exceed the old record by eight ounces and a fish over 100 pounds must exceed the previous record by 16 ounces to become a new state record. An entry that meets the old record but does not exceed it by the required amount will be considered a tie.
For a current list of state record marine fish, contact the DNR Fisheries Statistics Section, Office of Fisheries Management, Marine Resources Division, PO Box 12559, Charleston, SC 29422-2559, or contact Tom DuPre' by phone at (843) 953-9365 or by e-mail at dupret@mrd.dnr.state.sc.us.
- Written by Jennie R. Davis -