World’s largest freshwater fish caught in Cambodia

Mekong:  The world’s largest recorded freshwater fish—a giant stingray that weighed in at 300kg (661 lb) — has been caught in the Mekong River in Cambodia.    

Cambodian villagers on the Mekong River have caught what researchers say world's biggest freshwater fish ever recorded and took around a dozen men to haul to shore.  

Freshwater fish are defined as those that spend their entire lives in freshwater or marine species that migrate between fresh and saltwater.

Christened Boramy—meaning "full moon" in the Khmer language—because of her bulbous shape, was released back into the river after being electronically tagged to allow scientists to monitor her movement and behavior. 

Captured on June 13, the stingray measured almost four-metre (13-foot) from snout to tail and weighed slightly less than 300kg (660lbs), according to a statement on Monday by Wonders of the Mekong, a joint Cambodian-US research project.

Researchers say, “It is the fourth giant stingray reported in the same area in the past two months, all of them females,” adding that, this may be a spawning hotspot for the species. 

As per officials, the previous record for a freshwater fish was a 293-kg (646-lb) Mekong giant catfish, discovered in Thailand in 2005. 

The Mekong has the third-most diverse fish population in the world, according to its River Commission, though overfishing, pollution, saltwater intrusion and sediment depletion have caused stocks to plummet. 

The fisher who caught Boramy, in addition to the honour of having caught the record-breaker, was compensated at the market rate, meaning he received a payment of about $600.