Rare catch in Lake Erie called a ‘unicorn,’ and a fish of a lifetime

A teen fishing in a walleye/steelhead tournament thought he had hooked a big steelhead, but once the fish was boated, he quickly realized it was a salmon species that was out of place in Lake Erie. It was an Atlantic salmon.

Colton Alex, an experienced fisherman at age 18, was fishing in the tournament with Capt. Joe Nemet of Nemesis Sport Fishing when the fish hit a spoon 65 feet down, according to GoErie.

“It fought like a bigger steelhead,” Alex told GoErie. “Once it was netted...