the mississippi state record is only 65 lbs. but i think this fish is inelgible cause a commercial fisherman caught it in a net .

http://www.mdwfp.com/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=22847

That is one big goofy lookin' fish! I have never encountered one. Looks like an old dog with fish's body. Are they edible?

I've always called them spoonbill. You know, their eggs are highly prized as caviar.

They apparently are good for the eggs they carry.

Those fish freak me out....

i saw a guy who illegaly harvested their eggs by filling a swimming pool with about 500 paddlefish and some dirty water. he got caught.

That would scare the bejesus out of me. I may have to check the undies....

Up here in North Dakota they have a paddle fishing season.Its only a month long(May).The only way to catch them is to snag um with 10ft(stiff action) fishing poles using 40lb mono, 5oz weights, and huge treble hooks.You can only shore fish for them.Its quite a site to see a hundred people standing along the bank sweeping their rods back and forth trying to snag these monsters.

When you catch one,there are caviaer companys that will clean them for you if you give them the caviaer.There's a certain way they need to be cleaned cuase there is meat that is unedible in them(you'll get sick if you eat it).But the meat that is edible is delicious grilled with a little butter and seasoning.

Did they say what its weight is?

99 pounds