Boat too small to bring in half-ton mako shark

DESTIN, Fla. (AP) — They knew they were gonna need a bigger boat.

The crew of the Sea Ya Later II hooked a 1,063-pound mako shark in the Gulf of Mexico Wednesday. The 12-foot-6-inch shark was half the size of their 23-foot boat.

They called in the Mother Lode, a 45-foot charter boat, to help bring in the shark.

The fishermen harpooned the shark with flying gaffs, a large hook attached to rope used to pull in a fisherman's catch. The gaffs were tied to the Sea Ya Later II, which was tilting and close to taking on water.

"If (the shark) hadn't been as tired as she was, this boat would be sitting on the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico," said Lindsey Stanley, the Sea Ya Later II's captain.

The registered weight of 1,063 pounds makes the catch eligible for the world record in the 30-pound line class for a short-fin mako. The class record is a 997-pound, 11-ounce shark caught in Sydney, Australia, in 1995.