Atkinson County Angler Reels In a Tie State Record Fish

Wesley Daniels of Pearson, GA landed a tie to the current Spotted Sunfish state record of 0 lb, 12 oz on April 15 from the Suwannee River. This 8 ¾ inch catch ties the previous state record of 0 lb, 12 oz caught in 2024, according to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resources Division (WRD).

“I was fishing for catfish, so the unusual thing was that he was caught on a piece of shrimp, and I thought it was a big catfish at first,” said Daniels. “When I pulled him into the boat, me and my friend just looked at each other because we had never seen a stumpknocker that big!”

Spotted sunfish (Lepomis punctatus) are a member of the Sunfish family and are nicknamed “stumpknocker” because they orient strongly to stumps where they find food. They are dark olive or brown on top, with light green or olive sides, covered with small black spots and dusky orange fins. Most are less than half a pound by weight. They are found in the Ocmulgee, Oconee, Altamaha, Ogeechee, Ochlockonee, Suwannee, St. Mary’s, Satilla and Savannah River basins. They prefer heavily vegetated, slow-moving lowland streams and warm shallow ponds. When angling for them, WRD recommends using worms, crickets, small spinners, flies and popping bugs.

“We are excited to have our first freshwater fish state record for 2025, and I don’t know about you – but that certainly fires me up to get out and get on the water,” says Scott Robinson, WRD Chief of Fisheries. “Who will catch the next state record? It could be you! Be sure to take advantage of the outstanding variety of angling opportunities all over our state and you just might catch one of your own. Let’s Go Fish Georgia!”

Georgia anglers support fisheries conservation! Did you know that your license purchase allows WRD to continue to do important research, maintain and operate public fishing areas and more? Purchase a Georgia license at GoOutdoorsGeorgia.com.

For fishing tips, be sure to check out the weekly Fishing Blog post at GeorgiaWildlife.blog/category/fishing/.

Information about state-record fish, including an application and rules, can be found at GeorgiaWildlife.com/fishing/recordprogram/rules.