INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The largest freshwater fish ever recorded was captured in the Mekong River in Cambodia last week by a fisherman collaborating with
researchers to document the river&s biodiversity.The four-meter endangered giant freshwater stingray (Urogymnus polylepis) was hauled from
the river on June 13 before being measured and released back into the wild, the non-profit conservation news service Mongabay
reported.Weighing in at nearly 300 kilograms, the stingray surpasses the previous record holder, a 293-kg Mekong giant catfish
(Pangasianodon gigas) caught in Thailand in 2005.Experts say the find emphasizes what&s at stake in the Mekong, a river that&s facing a slew
of development threats, including major hydropower dams that have altered the river&s natural flow and exacerbated low river levels due to
dry-season droughts in recent years, Mongabay reported.&This is an absolutely astonishing discovery, and justifies efforts to better
understand the mysteries surrounding this species and the incredible stretch of river where it lives,& Zeb Hogan, a fish biologist and
leader of the USAID-funded Wonders of the Mekong project, said in a statement.The post Giant stingray caught in Cambodia is world&s largest
freshwater fish first appeared on Ariana News.
