Catch of the day

Greg Keefer. Photo provided by Greg Keefer.

Friends Greg Keefer and Rick Atkins fish at Sunset Beach three to four times a week. While fishing there on Jan. 3, Greg caught a carp weighing 24 pounds and Rick caught a catfish weighing seven pounds. They both used dough balls for bait.

While fishing at Sunset Beach three weeks later, Greg reeled in a carp weighing a whopping 30 pounds. He said it was the largest carp he ever caught. He used a piece of bread for bait.

The catfish was returned back into the lake, the carp was disposed of. Common carp degrade water quality and destroy habitat for waterfowl, fish and amphibians.

When searching for food, carp burrow into lake sediments and in the process uproot and disturb aquatic vegetation, increasing water turbidity and releasing large quantities of sediment-bound nutrients.

This stimulates algal blooms. These fish are notorious for altering their environment and should not be put back into the lake after being caught.