River fish in Australia are in danger of extinction because of a huge goldfish (Freshwater Fish Group & Fish Health Unit)
Andy Hackett, a 42-year-old British fisherman, caught with his rod a huge goldfish weighing 30 kilograms, which the local fishermen know and call "the carrot".
Many have tried to capture the hag (which is actually a female carp) in recent years but its enormous weight, elusiveness and tendency to hide made their task impossible.
Hackett went fishing in the "blue water" lakes of Champagne, France, a leading area for carp fishing in the country.
The fishing area is so popular that people reserve a place to fish there well in advance.
"I always knew the 'carrot' was there, but I never thought I'd catch it," said Hackett, a company director from Worcestershire.
Although not really a goldfish, the orange-penta colored creature is actually a hybrid species of ray carp and orange koi carp, common ornamental fish in ponds.
This particular fish, reportedly 20 years old, was introduced to the lakes 15 years ago by British Blue Water Lakes manager and spokesperson Jason Cowler. He told USA Today: “This species of fish was introduced to the lakes as a different catch challenge for anglers.
She is not the largest inhabitant of the lake, but without a doubt the most prominent.
Since then it has grown and grown, but it is not often exposed.
She is very elusive."
Indeed, the "carrot" eluded the fishermen's hands until earlier this month when it was captured by the act.
"'I knew it was a big fish when it grabbed my bait and moved it from side to side, up and down,'" the fisherman recalled.
"Then it came to the surface about 30 or 40 meters away and I saw it was orange. 'It was amazing to catch it, but it was also pure luck,'" added Hackett who spent 25 minutes trying to lure the monster fish to him.
The weight of the fish is 30 kilograms - that is 15 kilograms more than what until recently was considered the largest goldfish in the world, which was caught by a resident of Minnesota, Jason Fugate, in 2019.
It is also more than double the size of the 13.5kg bright orange koi carp caught by Italy's Raphael Biagini in southern France in 2010.
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After fishing for his treasure, Hackett was photographed barely holding it in his hands - and released it back into the water.
Afterwards, the Briton celebrated his achievement with a celebratory cup of tea.
"Congratulations to Andy on a great catch," said Cowler, who reported that the "carrot" was alive and in excellent health.
Many fishermen dream of getting their hands on the carp, less because of its size and more because of its color, since most giant carp are pale or brown.
The area boasts a considerable population of carp weighing 20 kilograms and more.
Besides Hackett's achievement, anglers have caught carp of equally surprising weights in the past such as one weighing 42 kilograms and another weighing 39 kilograms.
In another surprising case that happened in 2019, a Kentucky angler caught a 9-pound koi using a single biscuit as bait.
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