Admire the giant Siamese carp caught in the Mekong River with a body length of up to 3m, weighing up to 300kg.

The Mekong River has many species of giant fish, weighing several pounds, including Siamese carp (also known as carp, black carp) oil pangasius, stingray, pompano… However, anglers are very interested in hunting. Siamese carp.

This fish has the scientific name Catlocarpio siamensis. The Khmer c all it coral fish, which is the largest species of the Cyprinid family in the world.

They are present in the Mekong River and the Chao Phraya River basin in Indochina. The rivers in Thailand have quite a lot of giant Siamese carp species, so they attract anglers from all over the world.

In the past, they were present in large numbers in wide, deep, turbulent rivers, large puddles that do not flow quickly.

In Thailand, they are also found in large lakes on either side of the river. Small Siamese carp are present in small canals, wetlands and swamps.

When large, they seek out rivers to live, or stay in large, deep lakes.

They are slow-moving species that mainly feed on vegetables such as fruits and algae. They are almost exclusively vegetarian and almost never eat live animals.

Historically, there have been records of catching Siamese carp with a body length of up to 3m, weighing up to 300kg.

However, for many years now, there has been no information about the capture of great Siamese carp in Cambodia. The largest carefully recorded Siamese carp was in 1994, caught in Cambodia, weighing 150kg.

The anglers from Europe are very fond of Siamese carp. However, for many years now, they have only caught carp with a maximum length of 1.8m and weighing less than 100kg.

The anglers in Indochina are also interested in hunting this fish. Many fishing clubs have organized long trips to the lands along the Mekong River to fish for Siamese carp.

While anglers in Indochina release meat to eat as trophies, or sell it to restaurants for a few tens of millions of dong/a few tens of kilograms of Siamese carp, Western anglers often take souvenir photos and then release them. they go to rivers and lakes.

For many years now, the number of giant Siamese carp has continuously declined seriously. The production of Siamese carp has decreased by 90% compared to 20 years ago.

The main threats are habitat loss, pollution, dams, especially overfishing.

In Cambodia, the fishing data show that, in 1964, 200 tons of Siamese carp were caught, by 1980, only about 50 giant Siamese were caught, in 2000, only 10 were caught in the whole system. Mekong River system flows through Cambodia.

Therefore, the giant Siamese carp has been listed as Critically Endangered in the IUCN Red List. This species was recorded as completely extinct in the Chao Phraya River.

It is a slow-moving species that mainly feeds on vegetables such as fruits and algae. They are almost exclusively vegetarian and almost never eat live animals.