Fairdealing bowfisherman shoots world record-sized brown bullhead fish at Duck Creek Ditch

(KBSI) – A Fairdealing man shot a state record fish in Duck Creek Ditch on March 14.

Mitchell Dering of Fairdealing shot the third state record fish recorded in 2023, a 4-pound brown bullhead.

Dering shot the fish while bowfishing at Duck Creek Ditch #105 on March 14, according to the Missouri Department of Conservation.

The previous state record brown bullhead was a 2-pound, 7-ounce fish caught in 1994 from Wappapello Lake.

Dering says he went to one fo the ditches in Duck Creek after work that day and ‘just got lucky honestly.

He contacted the MDC Southeast Regional Office the next day to get his fish weighed.

MDC staff verified the fish’s weight on a certified scale in Wappapello.

Dering briefly held the state record for spotted gar back in 2019. His recent brown bullhead beats the current 3-pound, 4-ounce bowfishing world record.

He says he has won a few tournaments in Kentucky and Tennessee and placed in other tournaments.

The only confirmed self-sustaining natural population of brown bullheads in Missouri occurs at Duck Creek Conservation Area and nearby Mingo National Wildlife Refuge in Stoddard, Bollinger, and Wayne counties.

Dering said he’s working on his collection of state records and plans to get his bullhead mounted.

Tap here to learn more about brown bullheads from MDC’s online Field Guide.

Missouri state record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and alternative methods. Alternative methods include: trotline, throwline, limb line, bank line, jug line, gig, bow, crossbow, underwater spearfishing, snagging, snaring, grabbing, or atlatl

Tap here to learn more about world record fish from the International Game and Fish Association.