An extremely rare catch of a giant blue marlin was logged this week aboard the Pegasus out of San Diego.
The 648-pound marlin, caught after "a true team effort by everyone on the charter and crew," is said by Pegasus Sportfishing to be the largest blue marlin caught aboard a San Diego-based open-party fishing boat.
Blue marlin catches of any size are rare for the San Diego fleet because the massive billfish are typically found in warmer waters off Mexico and Hawaii.
But this has been a peculiar summer off Southern California, fueled by an intensifying "Super" El Niño and featuring catches or sightings of numerous tropical and subtropical fish. The list includes wahoo (ono), dorado (mahi-mahi), hammerhead sharks, whale sharks, and manta rays.
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accompanying footage shows Pegasus crew members hauling the 648-pound marlin, caught last Monday, aboard the vessel.
The catch is said to have surpassed the San Diego fleet "benchmark" of 583 pounds, set in 1992 by the vessel Zaida.
"I want to give credit to everyone aboard who worked together to make this happen,” Pegasus Sportfishing stated. "This was not a solo catch — it took the whole group coming together when it counted.”
Because it was a team effort, the catch could not have established a certified California or world record if it had qualified based on weight.
The California record for blue marlin stands at 692 pounds, set in 1932. The all-tackle world record stands at 1,376 pounds. That massive billfish was caught off Kona, Hawaii, in 1982.
This article originally appeared on For The Win: Giant blue marlin landed in rare, 'benchmark' catch off San Diego
