A bizarre-looking creature weighing 100 lbs has been caught by a stunned fisherman.
Derick Henderson said when he hooked in the “zombie fish” he “couldn’t believe” the size of it.
The 30-year-old filmed a video of the catch which gathered a staggering 2.2m views when he shared it on Instagram.
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“I hooked into the fish and the fight was on,” Derick told What’s The Jam.
“It felt like it took 10 minutes to get the fish in.
“When we pulled the fish up, we couldn’t believe the size and how much damage it had taken to still have that amount of fight in it.
“We talked it over with a professional and agreed she was strong enough that she had a good chance at surviving so we let it go.
“But we were in complete shock at the pure strength this fish had.
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“From the marks, we determined she had been struck by a boat prop.
“This fish could have been anywhere between 15-50 years old.”
In the video, Derick can be seen sitting with the fish lying across his lap.
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He quickly realised it was a paddlefish.
It had a long nose, a huge mouth, scars across its back and holes along its spine.
Some of its insides could be seen through the holes, which is what gave it a zombie-like look.
Derick captioned the post: “100+ POUND ZOMBIE PADDLEFISH!”
It has since gained over 46,400 likes and hundreds of comments from fans.
Adali said: “Looks like an old girl accidentally got too close to a motor hopefully she heals closed.”
Riley added: “Looks like it was hit with a prop.”
James said, “That’s an awesome catch, looks like it’s out of a movie.”
Someone else added: “Has to be some sort of rotting bacteria.”
Copper said, “Crazy resilience in these fish.”
CJ added: “It’s incredible what fish can survive.”
Another user said: “WOW! That’s amazing.”
Kem added: “One hell of a warrior.”
Derick, from Wanette, Oklahoma, added: “I have nothing but respect for wildlife.
“Nature can be a cruel mistress, but the determination and will to live that animals have are so powerful.
“I was very thankful to have this experience.”
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