The video captures an incredible moment when a fisherman caught a giant Mekong catfish.
According to Newsflare, fisherman Siannert Mongsing cast his net from his boat into the water, hoping to catch some food for lunch in the Mekong River, located in Udon Thani Province, Northern Thailand, on November 9.
However, when he pulled the net back onto his boat, he found it snagged on a massive creature: a Mekong catfish. He estimated it weighed around 150 kg.
Siannert Mongsing said: “I thought a large piece of trash was caught in my net, which is why it felt so heavy, but it turned out to be a giant catfish.”
Fisherman pulling the giant Mekong catfish onto the boat.
The proud fisherman had to release the Mekong catfish back into the river because it was too large. This species is also protected.
Siannert Mongsing added: “Because they are too large, the meat is almost all skin and not tasty, so I was happy to let it swim back into the water.”
Mekong catfish (scientific name: Pangasianodon gigas) is a species of freshwater fish that inhabits the lower region of the Mekong River. With a length of up to 3 meters and a weight that can reach 300 kg, the Mekong catfish is considered one of the largest freshwater fish species in the world.
The Mekong catfish has a large, flat head, a wide mouth with two long barbels on the upper jaw, and a long belly fin that extends to the tail fin, with a small dorsal fin at the front. Its back is dark brown, while its belly and fins are lighter in color. Despite its size, the Mekong catfish feeds primarily on aquatic vegetation.
In the countries located in the lower Mekong region (Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam), the Mekong catfish has been heavily fished, leading to a significant decline in their population in the wild. As a result, Laos has implemented a ban on fishing this species, and Cambodia and Thailand are currently planning similar measures.
The Mekong catfish is listed in Vietnam’s Red Book and the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s (IUCN) Red List, classified as critically endangered (with a very high risk of extinction in the wild).
