A Dartmouth Angling Club member has set a new club record after catching a 5lb 7oz triggerfish during the town’s annual fishing festival.

Dave Drury caught the fish on Saturday, October 3, the first of three days of competition aboard his boat, the Reiver, alongside his son Colin and friend Luke Spall.

The trio went on to claim three prizes during the festival, with Colin landing a 12lb 4oz thornback ray on the second day to win the best ray category, before Luke caught a wrasse weighing just under 4lb on the final day to take the best wrasse prize.

Dave’s triggerfish is a new record for Dartmouth Angling Club - a title previously held by himself - and could also set a new South Devon record.

According to Dave, triggerfish are typically found in warmer waters, including the Mediterranean and across the Atlantic towards the Americas, but have increasingly been appearing in British waters.

Dave said the species had become more familiar to local anglers over the decades, although it was once a rare sight.

“Our festival is over 60 years old, and it wasn’t until the mid-seventies that we started seeing the triggerfish show,” he said.

“It was 1978 when I caught my first, when not many people knew what they were.

“This was a new species for our club, which set a new club record of 2lb 7oz.”

He said more triggerfish had been caught in subsequent years, particularly in Cornwall, where warmer waters associated with the Gulf Stream have helped the species establish a greater presence.

Rising sea temperatures are also influencing the distribution of other marine species, with some traditionally British fish moving further north while species associated with warmer waters are appearing more frequently.

Tuna, too, have been increasingly caught in UK waters as conditions become more favourable for them.

Dartmouth’s fishing festival, which has been running for more than 60 years, continues to bring anglers together to compete for catches across a range of species.