Fish whopper: 646 pound Catfish! a freshwater record!

[The_Neon_Cowboy]

Fish whopper: 646 pounds a freshwater record

Researchers cite Thai catch to stress extinction dangers



Thai fishermen netted a catfish as big as a grizzly bear, setting a world record for the
largest freshwater fish ever found, according to researchers who studied the 646-pound
Mekong giant catfish as part of a project to protect large freshwater fish.

“It’s amazing to think that giants like this still swim in some of the world’s rivers,” project
leader Zeb Hogan project leader said in a statement. “We’ve now confirmed now that this
catfish is the current record holder, an astonishing find.”

“I’m thrilled that we’ve set a new record, but we need to put this discovery in context:
these giant fish are uniformly poorly studied and some are critically endangered," added
Hogan, a fellow with the World Wildlife Fund, which is partnering with the National
Geographic Society. "Some, like the Mekong giant catfish, face extinction.”

'Largest fish species disappearing'
Hogan said his study of giant freshwater fish "is showing a clear and global pattern: the
largest fish species are disappearing.

"The challenge is clear," he added, "we must find methods to protect these species and
their habitats. By acting now, we can save animals like the Mekong giant catfish from
extinction.”

Hogan's project includes two-dozen other species, including the giant freshwater stingray,
the dog-eating catfish, the dinosaur-like arapaima, and the Chinese paddlefish – "all of
which remain contenders for the title of the world’s largest fish," the researchers stated, pending the final results of their work.

"Long shots for the title include caviar-producing sturgeon, goliath Amazon catfish, giant
lungfish, razor-toothed gars, massive cods, and Mongolian salmon," they added.

Didn't survive capture
The Mekong giant catfish was caught and eaten in a remote village in Thailand along the
Mekong River, home to more species of giant fish than any other river in the world, the
researchers said.

Local environmentalists and government officials had negotiated to release the fish so it
could continue its spawning migration in the far north of Thailand, near the borders of
Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and China, but the adult male later died.

The researchers said the Mekong giant catfish is declining as a species due to habitat
destruction and upstream dams.

The Mekong River Basin is home to more species of massive fish than any river on Earth,
they added, and Mekong fish are the primary source of protein for the 73 million people
that live along the river.

wowsers! make one think twice about taking a swim! Ther are massive fish here in our
town naer the dam the divers that did some serivce a while back refused to go back
down becouse of being scared of the massive fish down there.

You alone in the dark hundreds of feet below the surface of the watter with massive
hungry fish, you being made of "meat", no one would here you screem nor come to your
aid. I don't blame them! the makeings of a horror movie (It's also a no fishing zone.....)

[MythicaL]

Holy crap that's huge!

[dj_stick]

that's a big fish

[toddsmack2k]

Mmmmmm! Catfish filets for everybody.

[The_Neon_Cowboy]

I get pretty sick of it thats an insane amout of meat

[Ev!L-aLphA]

wow! thats 6x me

[BiGBrOwNPimpsta]

thats scary.....

[e v o]

Originally Posted by The_Neon_Cowboy

You alone in the dark hundreds of feet below the surface of the watter with massive
hungry fish, you being made of "meat", no one would here you screem nor come to your
aid. I don't blame them! the makeings of a horror movie (It's also a no fishing zone.....)

THAT is definately freaky. When i first saw this and read that it reminded me of the local aquarium, which has a giant grouper exhibit. The aquarium itself is pretty dark and there are lots of shadows. The exhibit with the groupers are very dark, and the water is extremely murky. You can catch a glimse of their bodys moving around, but you only see them up close when their faces swim past the glass. Even if they don't care to eat me that much, the sheer size and the thought of being alone deep in the ocean with them. *shudders*. You could say i have a fear of the ocean.

[Stop It]

That is one heck of a fish, how did they catch it?

[riles9262]

That thing is a monster! Puts my 18lb spring salmon to shame

[The_Neon_Cowboy]

Originally Posted by e v o

THAT is definately freaky. When i first saw this and read that it reminded me of the local aquarium, which has a giant grouper exhibit. The aquarium itself is pretty dark and there are lots of shadows. The exhibit with the groupers are very dark, and the water is extremely murky. You can catch a glimse of their bodys moving around, but you only see them up close when their faces swim past the glass. Even if they don't care to eat me that much, the sheer size and the thought of being alone deep in the ocean with them. *shudders*. You could say i have a fear of the ocean.

This is just in a lake tough its man maid from an existing stream and verry deep.
All very old bodies of watter can have some huge fish......

I've only had one experance that has all ways stuck with me from year of fishing on that lake, a fish one time come up an snaped 20lb test with a steel leed like a twig. I thought
the poll was going to break in 1/2 just a 6 foor cropier pole.. Hell I was only fishing for panfish even tough I'd every do often get a striped bass or two or a catfish. At the time I was fishing off the back of a 45ft house boat from a detph of just 8 feet. My unnkles said i was fun of **** and it was probubly the achor line of something. Well the anchor line in the the frount of the boat, the wind blowing makes it pull against make it tight as it pulled by the wind. makeing that impossable. Also the hook an string wasn't in the anchor line when it was pulled. I had a simlar experince one in the really big creek that orgionates at that lake. Slow current, great for catfish.... Again a fish snapped my line with a steel leed 20lb test... my dad and anothe unkle that was with me said it probubly was a long or something....

I'm not stupid there is a massive differance you can "feel" when a fish on on the other end
by the feel of it becous there in a line streaced between you and the fish and you can feel it fights / swiming... That feeling you feel with just about every fish