9-Foot-Long World Record Wels Catfish Caught In Poland Is Big Enough To Swallow A Goat

iStockphoto / Film Studio Aves

The Wels catfish is among the largest freshwater fish species on earth. Currently, the IGFA fishing world record for Wels catfish sits at 297 pounds and 9 ounces, and was caught on the River Po, in Italy back in 2010. But that’s the weight, not the length…

It is unclear exactly how much the fish below weighs/weighed but this is easily one of the largest catfish we’ve ever seen here at BroBible. And it smashed the world record for length.

Enormous Wels Catfish Caught In Poland

The previous Wels catfish length world record was 261 centimeters. This absolutely gargantuan fish measured 292 centimeters, a cool 9.6 feet long.

Clips of the behemoth fish began hitting social media after the two anglers from the Polish Angling Academy hauled it in. According to Wired2Fish, they landed this world record fish during a fishing tournament on the Rybnik Reservoir in Southern Poland. Check this absolute unit out:

Anglers Krzysztof Pyra and Adrian Gontarz spent 90 minutes battling the world record-sized Wels catfish before getting it to their boat and later to shore. The fact that they were able land this fish is just so wildly impressive. It is the size of a Harley Davidson.

Catch and release is the way to go. After being measured, the record-setting catfish was released back into the reservoir to continue growing.

Everything To Know About This Fish

The Wels lives across Central, Southern, and Eastern Europe and are considered a sport fish across Europe from the UK to Turkey. It is easy to see why. They are massive.

The name ‘Wels’ is originated from an Old High German word for ‘whale’ as there are obvious similarities.

Skeletal remains of these fish have been found dating back 7 million years. Females produce up to 30,000 eggs and the species lives for a long time. They have been documented living up to 70 years in Sweden.

Elsewhere in Poland last week, this enormous Wels catfish was landed:

Have you ever caught one? Let us know in the Facebook comments!