New hope for Mekong ‘megafish’
Weighing in at 661 pounds, a giant stingray hooked by a fisherman in Cambodia’s Mekong River earlier this month has taken the title of world’s largest freshwater fish.
Nicknamed “Boramy,” or “full moon” in the Khmer language, the female ray — which was released — raises hope that critically endangered freshwater fish can survive the environmental damage threatening Southeast Asia’s most important river, Stefan Lovgren reported for National Geographic.
“It proves these underwater leviathans, which are in critical danger, still exist,” freshwater scientist Zeb Hogan told National Geographic.
Hogan embarked on a search for the world’s largest freshwater fish 15 years ago, when fishers caught a 646-pound catfish in the Mekong. Since then, his “Megafish Project” has spanned six continents — but tracking these behemoths is tricky.
Vanessa Bauza
