JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KTVI) – When Mitchell Dering got off work on March 14, he had the itch to go fishing.

Dering went to Duck Creek Conservation Area in southeastern Missouri with his bow and scanned the waters on one of the ditches.

When he saw a bullhead in the water, he took aim. His shot was true, and he knew the fish was big.

The next day, Dering brought the brown bullhead to the Missouri Department of Conservation’s Southeast Regional Office in Wappapello to weigh the fish on a certified scale.

The fish weighed 4 pounds, shattering the previous record of 2 pounds, 7 ounces set in 1994.

It also tops the current bowfishing world record of 3 pounds, 4 ounces. According to the Bowfishing Association of America, that record was set by a Florida fisherman in 2021.

“That’s honestly pretty awesome,” Dering said. “I’ve bowfished for quite a while. We’ve won a few tournaments in Kentucky and Tennessee and have placed in numerous other tournaments. That’s cool, I didn’t know that!”

According to the MDC, the only self-sustaining populations of brown bullhead are located at Duck Creek and nearby Mingo National Wildlife Refuge.

Dering, who previously held the state record for spotted gar in 2019, said he plans on mounting this world-record catch.

Another Missouri fishing record was set in Duck Creek Conservation Area recently. Tyler Goodale – already a world record holder for spotted sucker – caught not one but two 11-ounce fliers on the same trip, both surpassing the previous state record of 10 ounces, according to state wildlife officials.