Critically endangered Mekong catfish found in Cambodia

By Andriani Maria Lamprinou

In Cambodia, six giant Mekong catfish, considered a critically endangered species, were caught and released, creating many hopes for the survival of the species.

The particular species is critically endangered because its population decreased by 80% in recent decades. This could be attributed to a variety of reasons, two main ones being the overfishing of the species and the creation of dams that stop the migratory path that the fish use in order to reproduce.

These fish can grow up to 10 feet (three meters) long and weigh up to 300 kilograms (661 pounds), according to an article written by the Associated Press (AP). For now, they can only be found in Southeast Asia’s Mekong River, but in the past, they could be seen from the outlet of the river in Vietnam up to its northern reaches in the Yunnan province in China.

Not many people who use the Mekong River as a way to survive have ever seen this species, while the fact that six of them were caught and released in the time span of five days seems out of the ordinary even now.

According to AP, the first two were found on the Tonle Sap river, a branch of the Mekong River close to the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh. After they were captured, they were given identification tags and released. On Tuesday, four more of these were caught including two longer than two meters (6.5 feet) that weighed 120 kilograms (264 pounds) and 131 kilograms (288 pounds). The fish were apparently migrating from Cambodia’s Tonle Sap Lake along the Mekong River, probably to their breeding places in northern Cambodia, Laos or Thailand.

A conservation program between the Wonders of the Mekong and the Cambodian Fisheries of the Administration has caught, put identification tags and released around 100 of those fish, something that allowed for more information to be given on how the catfish migrate, their habitats and their health.

But of course, conservation attempts wouldn’t be possible without the effort the community put in. Nowadays, fishermen have learned to report and inform officials of times when they accidentally catch rare and endangered fish species, allowing researchers to go to places where such species were seen before and tag them before releasing them.

But the Mekong giant catfish isn’t the only fish whose habitat is that place, as this river is also inhabited by the salmon carp, which many believed that it was extinct before being seen this year, and the giant sting ray.

According to AP, Brian Eyler, director of the Washington-based Stimson Center’s Southeast Asia program, said how he’s hopeful that after the catch and the release of such special fish, the Mekong countries will understand the value and uniqueness of such species and care for them more.