Utah sucker

A sucker for a good record.

Joe Levin of Austin, Texas, established a new Idaho catch and release state record for Utah sucker after landing a fish measuring 26 inches on the South Fork Snake River.

Levin caught and released the record-setting sucker on August 8th while fishing the renowned eastern Idaho river, surpassing the previous catch and release state record set by Rick Thompson in 2021, which was a 25-inch Utah sucker, also from the South Fork Snake River.

Utah suckers are native fish that often receive less attention than Idaho's trout, but their size and strength can make them a surprisingly challenging catch.

Like many native non-game fish, they also play an important role in healthy aquatic ecosystems.

Sucker populations are beneficial to aquatic environments as they help clean the habitat, process nutrients for other fish species, and provide a valuable prey item for other aquatic and terrestrial species Over 60 species of suckers are found in the United States and Canada.

Idaho is home to six different species of suckers, including the large-scale, long-nose, green, Utah, mountain, and bridgelet.

While suckers are sometimes confused with carp, they are a different fish species altogether.