Cambodian villagers on the Mekong River caught what researchers say is the largest freshwater fish in the world ever recorded, a stingray that weighed 300kg and took about a dozen men to tow to shore.
Christened Boramy — meaning “full moon” in the Khmer language — because of her bulbous shape, the four-foot-tall female was released back into the river after being electronically tagged so scientists could track her movement and behavior.
“This is very exciting news because it was the world’s largest fish,” said biologist Zeb Hogan, ex-host of the National Geographic Channel’s “Monster Fish” show and now part of a conservation project on the river.
“It’s also exciting news, because it means this part of the Mekong is still healthy…. It’s a sign of hope that these huge fish (here) are still alive.”
Boramy, fished last week off Koh Preah, an island off Cambodia’s northern part of the river, set the record for a 293kg giant catfish caught upriver in northern Thailand in 2005.
The Mekong has the third most diverse fish population in the world, according to the River Commission, although overfishing, pollution, saltwater intrusion and sediment depletion have caused stocks to plummet.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.)