An Australian fisherman reeled in a 175cm sea beast while fishing at the weekend. His shocking discovery has sparked debate online after people said he was too “magnificent” to be caught.

65-year-old fisherman unexpectedly reeled in sea beast (Image: @NINE/Getty) A stunned fisherman faced backlash after he reeled in a monstrous sea creature weighing a whopping 80kg.

The angler, from Brisbane, Australia, managed to catch the bass grouper while fishing in the shelter of southern Queensland at the weekend.

He cast a line rated at 30lb (14kg) and was stunned when he caught the 175cm marine giant off North Stradbroke Island.

Megafish are generally found at ocean depths between 250 and 600 meters and can measure up to 200 cm long and reach 100 kg, according to records.

The proud 65-year-old put the “magnificent” beast on display by posting images on social media, which has since caused a divide online, Daily Mail reports.

He caught the fish in his retirement savings pot (Image: Getty Images)

Some people praised him for his catch, as one person commented: “A worthy catch would have been a struggle to get into the boat.”

However, one user said: “Please tell me he was released, he’s probably older than the fisherman who caught him and now he’s just a trophy.”

“Poor bastard, I hope they released him,” a third person commented.

Another added: “I’m not an activist, but that’s sad.”

Some users rushed to the angler’s defense, saying he was “obviously not targeting that fish” and pointing out the strength of his line.

He shared his huge discovery online (Image: @NINE/Getty)

But others argued that it was the “best 30-pound line in the world” and noted that it was “a great jig to swing with.”

Despite causing a division of opinion, commentators noted that even if the fish had been released, it likely would not have survived after release.

“It would be a waste because a fish of those depths, whether it is 10 cm or 1 m, has barotrauma, the rapid change in pressure causes the gases in the fish’s body to expand, which is deadly,” added one user. .

While another said: “You will never see such honesty shown by commercial fishermen, there is a toll on similar sized fish of other species that goes unnoticed or unrecorded.”