Cambodian villagers catch the world's largest freshwater fish in the Mekong River
Last month, Cambodian fisherman Sam Lansi and his companions caught a giant freshwater stingray weighing 180 kilograms and 1.9 meters wide in the Mekong River Basin, counting its whip-shaped tail 4 meters long and a 15-centimeter-long poisonous serrated barb at the end of the tail.
The fishermen were so conservationist that they informed the University of Nevada Reno (UNR) of the conservation organization, operated in partnership with the local fishing authorities, to take the measurements, after which the fish were released. The people of this organization are very excited, and they think it shows that the Mekong River is still relatively healthy, and there can be such a giant beast.
Only a month later, an even larger freshwater stingray was caught, breaking the world record of 293 kilograms caught in Thailand in 2005.
After the record-breaking stingray was caught, the fishermen again informed UNR, and a dozen people rushed to the scene to pull it ashore and take measurements. This freshwater stingray is a female, weighing 300 kg and growing about 4 meters without counting the tail. Such a rare giant fish must be released with an electronic logo.
Although the Mekong, like most of the world's rivers, has problems with pollution and overfishing, it is still the third most diverse fish population.
Today we're going to talk about this giant, but little-known, freshwater stingray.
Giant freshwater stingray
Despite its size, the giant freshwater stingray was first observed in 2004, when the individuals found may not have been very large, so it was not officially recognized as a new species until 2006, when the fish was caught again.
The behemoths are not active predators, they lurk in the deep waters of the estuary, burying themselves in the silt and sand at the bottom of the river. They have sensors that detect the animal's electric field, can sense the dynamics of their prey in advance, prepare in advance and launch attacks, so although they are ambushers, they can catch the food needed to meet their huge size.
Their flattened, broad body and long whip-like tail have barely changed over millions of years, again demonstrating the effectiveness of their hunting strategy.
The fish are 30 centimeters long at birth, and scientists believe they can grow to at least 5 meters long, but they have not been found before. Fortunately, they lurk at the bottom of the river and will not take the initiative to attack humans, otherwise no one will be able to hold it. Imagine a spike up to 38 centimeters long, with a paralytic toxin, this spike can simply penetrate the human skin, if it is punctured...
postscript
Despite their frightening size, because of their elusive features, scientists have no way to estimate their populations, and can only identify them as endangered based on the degradation of their habitat.