Kaylee Nicholson, 12, of Athens, celebrated National Fishing Day on June 6 in fine form. Kaylee and her best friend, Sidney Bruyere of Blooming Grove, were among a crowd of 800 who turned out for a National Fishing Day event at the Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center near Athens.

Fishing in Lake Zebco on the grounds of TFFC, Kaylee caught a 1.14 pound, 10-inch long bluegill that earned her four certificates from Texas Parks and Wildlife.

The fish is a bluegill record for two-acre Lake Zebco, a Junior State Rod and Reel record for the species, a catch and release water body record for Lake Zebco and it also qualified for a Big Fish Award.

Catch and release water body records are a new fish records program that TP&W started in June, meaning thousands of new fish record slots are available to enterprising anglers. There are 17 freshwater game fish species and 22 saltwater species eligible for water body records.

To qualify, an angler must submit a photo of the fish next to a tape measure, along with a photo of the angler holding the fish. A signed application form, downloadable from the TP&W Web site, www.tpwd.state.tx.us, must also be submitted.

Catch and release records are determined by the fish's total length. As with state catch and release records, a fish must be at least as long as the minimum size requirement for a big fish award in order to be recognized as a water body record.

"By adding a public water body catch and release category, we're allowing more anglers–especially kids–to obtain a record without having to locate certified scales," said Joedy Gray, who heads up fish records for TP&W. "We've also wanted to expand this program in a way that does not require an angler to kill a fish to be recognized for an achievement."

While catch and release records are based on the total length of the fish, record-conscious anglers who take the time to have a portable scale certified may claim as many as five state records program certificates with one outstanding catch.

Gray said the most common type of portable scale used to certify record catches is the Boga Grip, a spring scale device that's also used to handle and unhook fish with a minimal amount of harm to the fish. The scale must be certified as accurate by a company that performs such a service. Gray said thousands of water body fish records remain unclaimed in many categories. Filling some of those slots can be an interesting summer project for youth anglers who can research the TP&W Web site to determine open records, then spend time outdoors trying to catch and document fish to fill the records.

Each record fish that's approved by TP&W earns a certificate suitable for framing.

"The water body catch and release category will really open up fish records to a lot of people," Gray said. "That's what we're shooting for. I may regret this because of the increase in the number of record applications, but I think we'll get more anglers involved."