Cambodia's Mekong River recently caught a huge stingray weighing 300 kilograms, which scientists point out is the largest freshwater fish ever recorded. Due to the size of the stingray, 12 adult men joined forces to carry it ashore.
According to the 20th, the stingray was caught by a fisherman in the Mekong River in Stung Treng province in northeastern Cambodia on the 14th of this month, in connection with the Mekong Conservation Program Wonders of the Mekong. Cambodian and U.S. scientists, along with local officials, carried it ashore with a giant tarp.
Known as "Boramy" (full moon in Khmer) because of its round body shape, the female stingray is 4 meters long and weighs about 300 kilograms.
It beat a 293-kilogram Mekong giant catfish caught in Thailand in 2005, setting a new record for the largest freshwater fish.
Zeb Hogan, a biologist and head of the Mekong Wonders, said: "It's very surprising news because it's the largest freshwater fish in the world," adding: "It also means that the Mekong river is still healthy and that this large fish can still live here." ”
Scientists have marked it with electronic tags to track the stingray's movements and behavior in the future, and have now released it back into the river.
The Mekong River originates in Zaduo County, Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, China, and flows through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam along the way. The Mekong River is rich in biodiversity, but the ecosystem is also affected by overfishing, human construction of dams, and pollution.