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Fishermen Reel In, Release 500-Pound Hammerhead

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By KEITH MORELLI

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 3, 2008

TAMPA - There's nothing like fishing at night and reeling in a real live monster.

That's what happened when David Humphress yanked a 10-foot-6-inch hammerhead shark out of the Gulf of Mexico. Captain Daniel Long of Other Side Charters measured the girth and estimated the weight at just more than 500 pounds.

When the shark surfaced next to the boat, the three paying fishermen were taken aback, Long said.

"Pretty much everybody in the boat went to the other side, except for me and the other captain," Long said.

He said that on the night of April 24, the Other Side Charters boat was cruising along the north side of Honeymoon Island and had landed a couple of black tip sharks, both under 3 feet.

The anglers were fishing specifically for sharks. Bait was a bonita that measured more than 2 feet long itself, Long said.

About 8:30 p.m., in about 7 feet of water and less than 100 yards from the beach, the hit came.

"We knew it was big," Long said. "We didn't know how big."

It took an hour or so to land the massive predator on 60-pound monofilament line and a 10-foot wire leader, he said.

The exhausted shark was pulled up alongside the boat, and a bunch of photos were taken.

"We got pictures of him and then revived him and released him," Long said.

Although the hammerhead was big, it was nowhere near a record.

"You have to get up to 900 pounds or better for that," Long said.

Reporter Keith Morelli can be reached at (813) 259-7760 or kmorelli@tampatrib.com.

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