Found in Cambodia, 300 kg stingray is now the largest freshwater fish

CHENNAI: According to scientists, the Mekong River in Cambodia holds the largest freshwater fish ever found.

Moul Thun, a 42-year-old fisherman, caught the enormous fish in the Mekong River on June 13. He then contacted a group of researchers from the Wonders of Mekong project as soon as he had the catch.

Scientists quickly concluded that the fish was a healthy female gigantic stingray after studying it. According to Wonders of the Mekong, a collaborative Cambodian-American study effort, it is about 13 feet long from snout to tail and weighs just under 300 kilos.

The giant freshwater stingray is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae. Although formerly it may have been more widely spread in South and Southeast Asia, it is now found in sizable rivers and estuaries in Southeast Asia and Borneo.

According to the organisation, a 293 kg Mekong giant catfish found in Thailand in 2005 held the previous record for a freshwater fish.

According to reports, the scientists tagged the enormous fish in order to track its movements and better understand how members of their species behave when swimming in freshwater rivers.

The fisherman who found the stingray received $600 (€569) in reward for his efforts in addition to the glory of having captured the record-breaker.