Most fishermen seek big fish but for Ron Davenport of Fremont, a whopper came to him — a 49½-inch, 53-pound white amur to be exact. Right into his backyard.
Davenport lives on aptly named Minnow Creek, a small seasonal drainage that runs through the south side of town and usually runs a foot deep. But it flooded with runoff recently.
“I was going to work,” Davenport said about his initial sighting. “I saw it in the backyard. I saw the fish flopping around.” But he was in a rush so did not check it out immediately.
“Next day I went out and asked, ‘Is that a fish, or is that a log?’” he said. Davenport called Fred Snyder, an Ohio Sea Grant agent and biologist, who confirmed it was an amur, also known as a grass carp, an Asian member of the minnow family. They often are used in ponds for vegetation control.
Ron Davenport of Fremont, right, poses with his daughter, Emily, and a 53-pound white amur that turned up in his backyard.
Trouble is, Snyder said, it is a mystery where this huge fish originated. It is the largest specimen Snyder ever has seen.
“Last year I saw one bigger than this one,” the Fremonter said, adding that nobody believed him. “Everybody laughed.” No more.
Subject: Fremont man finds huge grass carp in backyard 
Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:52 pm
