Stoddard County angler swipes state record for black buffalo

Joshua Lee, of Bernie, shows off his state-record 76-pound black buffalo shot while bowfishing at Duck Creek Conservation Area on April 21, 2019.
Joshua Lee, of Bernie, shows off his state-record 76-pound black buffalo shot while bowfishing at Duck Creek Conservation Area on April 21, 2019.

Joshua Lee, of Bernie, caught a state-record 76-pound black buffalo while bowfishing at Duck Creek Conservation Area on April 21.

The previous record black buffalo weighed 74 pounds, according to a Missouri Department of Conservation news release.

MDC staff verified the fish's weight using a certified scale in Bernie.

"That's a big fish - even for one of Missouri's largest species of suckers," MDC Fisheries Programs Specialist Andrew Branson said in the news release.

Sucker fish live on the bottom of lakes, rivers and streams. They feed by sucking up mainly invertebrates and plants. These fish are found in a majority of rivers and lakes throughout most of Missouri.

Suckers are one of the dominant groups of large fishes in Missouri waters. In many streams, their total poundage may exceed that of all other fishes combined.

Missouri state-record fish are recognized in two categories: pole-and-line and alternative methods. Alternative methods include throwlines, limb lines, bank lines, jug lines, spearfishing, snagging, snaring, gigging, grabbing, archery and atlatl.