BALTIMORE, MD—Landon Derbyshire, a 15-year-old from Eden, has achieved the 13th FishMaryland Master Angler Award. He caught and released a massive sand tiger shark off the state’s coast last month.

He caught the shark on a boat just beyond the breakers off of a Maryland ocean beach on August 27, 2024, at the age of 15…just two weeks before his 16th birthday. He is the second youth angler to win the award. After 11-year-old angler Lucy Moore earned that title in May 2024, Derbyshire then determined he would work to achieve the award before his 16th birthday.

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ FishMaryland program recognizes recreational anglers who catch ten trophy-sized fish of different species in Maryland. Dozens of species from both salt and freshwater can be caught in the program.

In order to qualify, anglers must submit entries for all ten catches and receive individual certificates for each catch. Derbyshire submitted his ten catches all over the eastern shore, including the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean.

Some of the other species he caught include carp, sheepshead, blue shark, red drum, striped bass, and spotted seatrout. His favorite fish to catch would be red drum.

Derbyshire said that he got into fishing when his dad took him pond fishing when he was around five years old and he really enjoyed it.

He went to Sea Hawk Sport Center in Pocomoke City to get help getting the ten fish he needed to become a Master Angler.

“I showed people I could do it before I was old enough to get a fishing license,” Derbyshire said. “I had a lot of fun catching these fish and would not have caught them without help from the great folks at Sea Hawk Sport Center in Pocomoke City. My advice is to never give up, and keep fishing.”

The Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ FishMaryland program has been in existence since 2019. There have been 13 Master Anglers who have caught ten trophy-sized fish of different species in Maryland.

This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.

Photo: Landon Derbyshire, 13th FishMaryland Master Angler, holds a red drum caught and released near Crisfield on Sep 2, 2023. Photo by Chris Derbyshire via Maryland DNR.