Ladysmith man catches rare albino musky

MADISON (AP) — Paul Parise bagged one rare fish this month.

Parise, of Ladysmith, snagged a 51-inch inch albino muskie on Oct. 6 on the lower Flambeau River in Rusk County.

The fish is the second albino musky caught in Wisconsin waters over the last five years. A state Department of Natural Resources fisheries crew caught one in their nets during population surveys in 2005. That fish was far smaller at 32.7 inches long.

Tim Simonson is the co-chair of the DNR's musky committee. He says albino muskies rarely survive to grow as large as the one Parise caught because they lack the camouflage they need hide from predators and sneak up on prey.

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