World Record Sargo

[Latimeria]

So, I had to fend off a Sargo record from Spain that supposedly beat mine back in the day.  Problem is the common name of a "Sargo" is the same here as it is there...  a Mediterranean Sargo (Diplodus sargus) from the European/Middle East countries are always confused with the Pacific Sargo (Anisotremus davidsonii).  The IGFA record I submitted states "The Anisotremus davidsonii fish".  So I had to contact IGFA and let them know they were submitting the wrong species of sargo for the record.  After a month, someone finally said, Whoops, our bad and it was corrected.

Well, I got beat out by 2 oz  up at the Balboa Angling Club and it was weighed by my old SCSF friend, Ed, who couldn't wait to tell me he just weighed a Sargo that just beat my IGFA record (5 or 6 years later).  Well, I just went to check the record to see if that got beat, and I see those dummies just made the same friggand mistake they did all those years ago.  The size of the fish may be right, but there are no Anisotremus davidsonii that live in Barcelona Spain...  Poor guy doesn't probably realize his record was stolen by the wrong fish.  Oh well...  One of the problems with common names.

https://igfa.org/igfa-world-records-search/?search_type=CommonNameSummary&search_term_1=Sargo

[sasquatch]

Just goes to show the saying "All common names are correct" still works.

Comes from horticulture regarding use of genus/species instead of common name, but it seems to apply here as well.

[jrodda]

IGFA sure runs a tight ship. Pic of your Sargo or Im gonna assume it's also the wrong species!

The only one I ever caught was probably about 2lbs and fought about as hard as the 2' leopard I caught the same day.

[SevengillTheVC]

Kind of wish our Salema had the properties of the Mediterranean varieties lol. Never caught a sargo.

[Latimeria]

IGFA sure runs a tight ship. Pic of your Sargo or Im gonna assume it's also the wrong species!

The only one I ever caught was probably about 2lbs and fought about as hard as the 2' leopard I caught the same day.

They run a tight ship for sure with all of the evidence I had to submit, but strange this is happening twice for the same fish.

[Latimeria]

Here she is... even only for a short time.  Word to the wise, weigh your fish on an appropriate scale.  I first weighed it on Dana's big ass scale they were using for Threshers, Tuna and Makos at the time, but didn't get the scale certified this particular year.  It came out to 3lb 13 oz on that scale.  IGFA alerted me to this and had me weigh it again, but on a more appropriate sized scale for the size of fish I was weighing.  This was what I should have weighed it on originally, but Dana was closer when I caught it.  It was 4 lbs and 1.3 oz  on this newly certified scale, but IGFA said they had to use the first weight according to their rules and I need to know to use an appropriate sized scale for the size of the fish since large scales like at Dana don't usually have the lower end points calibrated... i.e, don't weigh a 4 pound fish on a 1,000 pound scale as it'll most likely not be as accurate as weighing it on a 10 pound laboratory scale.  Lesson learned... 

[jrodda]

4 and change! Damn, that's a tough lesson. Good to know though. Keep smaller scales handy...

[Tim524]

 I used to catch some huge  Sargo  inside SDG&E Power Plant in Carlsbad. There was a small pond between the Lagoon and the Plant that was loaded with them. Janie's dad worked there at the time and had access and keys to the gates to get in, we never weighed them but they were big and fun to catch. I remember seeing your award in your garage Tom, cool stuff

[Latimeria]

I was thinking... Damn, If I caught a 4-1/2 pound Sargo, that should be the new world record, but there is an imposter c*ck blocking the throne.  I messaged the IGFA this quick message on their FB account since I couldn't find a direct email to the person in charge of record keeping.  Here is what I sent.

"Good morning.  I hope all is well out there.  I wanted to bring a possible error to your attention for an ATWR.  I had the record for a few years and since was beaten by a fellow angler up in Newport, CA.  The fish I'm referring to is the Pacific Ocean Sargo (Anisotremus davidsonii).  I've been trying to catch an even bigger Sargo and have come close, but when I checked the records, I noticed that the new record is from an angler who caught it in Spain.  That Sargo is a totally different fish (Diplodus sargus) with the same common name.  Can you direct me to the correct weight for the ATWR Anisotremus davidsonii ?  I'm fairly certain the listed sargo is incorrect and is tough to beat as it is a totally different species.  Thank you and I appreciate any help in this inquiry. Kind regards, Tom"

I kept myself from saying this is the second time this has happened, but I will let you know what I get back from them.  Beating a 4# 2oz Sargo is doable...  Finding a 4# 12oz is exponentially tougher since the Salton Sea is dead.

[KogaHead]

F'ing stupid rules.

Glad it was Ed, he has been fishing the since the 50's. Classy old school dude.

[Latimeria]

So, the IGFA got back to me with a short message:

Thanks for bringing this to our attention we will pull the record files and investigate more.

We'll see how this goes.  lol

[SevengillTheVC]

TOOK YER RECORD!

[Latimeria]

Nothing was done about it, so I sent another message...  Funny thing is I saw that I sent something back in 2018 to them also and nothing was done.  I might have to write up a piece and put it on P-Soul's front page.  Maybe start some ripples. lol

Jack Vitek
Oct 19, 2021, 6:14 AM (2 days ago)
to Zachary, me

Hello Tom,

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. We will look into this and make the appropriate changes. Again, thank you for letting us know about this.

Best regards,

Jack Vitek
Marketing Director & Chief of Staff
International Game Fish Association
300 Gulf Stream Way
Dania, FL 33004

(954) 924-4246
jvitek@igfa.org
www.igfa.org