Massachusetts fishermen catch 1,260-pound blue marlin, nearing world record

Two fishermen from Massachusetts caught a blue marlin weighing 1,260 pounds while fishing approximately 100 miles off Cape Cod. Damon Stacco and his client Walter Chapman initially mistook the fish for a shark. After three hours of struggle, they successfully reeled in the marlin, which was weighed on an IGFA certified scale in Falmouth. This catch is significant as it is just 142 pounds short of the world record for Atlantic blue marlin, which stands at 1,402 pounds, caught off Brazil 34 years ago. Walt Golet, director of the University of Maine Pelagic Fisheries Lab, noted that the catch is remarkable due to the colder waters off Massachusetts, which are typically not conducive to blue marlin. He estimated the fish's age to be between 25 to 30 years. The meat from the catch will be shared among about a dozen people.