Largest freshwater fish ever caught hooked in Cambodia

[Jilly_in_VA]

A fisherman in northern Cambodia hooked what researchers say is the world’s largest freshwater fish — a giant stingray that scientists know relatively little about.

The fisherman, 42, caught the 661-pound fish — which measured about 13 feet in length — near a remote island on the Mekong River in the Stung Treng area. A team of scientists from the Wonders of Mekong research project helped tag, measure and weigh the ray before it was released back into the river. The research group believes it was healthy when released and expects it to survive.

The tag — which emits an acoustic signal — will allow researchers to track the fish’s movements and, they hope, learn more about its species’ behavior in the Mekong.

The catch “highlights how little we know about a lot of these giant freshwater fish,” said Zeb Hogan, a fish biologist at the University of Nevada. “You have a fish that’s now the record holder for the world’s largest freshwater fish, and we know little about it.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/science/science-news/largest-freshwater-fish-ever-caught-hooked-cambodia-rcna34152

[SWBTATTReg]

1. I had to reread the title, and thought perhaps it was reverse of what it should have said,

Largest freshwater fish pulls in fisherman in Cambodia!

[Walleye]

2. That is amazing, and fascinating

[Ziggysmom]

3. Happy to read it was released ❤️ Something so spectacular deserves to live and

make baby stingrays!

[cstanleytech]

4. I am glad they decided to release it as it would have been a sad ending for a

fish that size to have ended up on a dinner table.