Fisherman catches 127-kg giant barb in Mekong Delta

PHNOM PENH (The Cambodia Herald) -- A Vietnamese fisherman caught a 127-kg giant barb (Catlocarpio siamensis) in the Mekong Delta over the weekend, Dan Tri reported.

The online news service said Nguyen Van Minh caught the critically endangered fish, known as trey kolreang in Khmer, in Vinh Long province on Saturday.

The fish was sold for 163 million dong ($8,150), amounting to 1.28 million dong ($64) a kilo, the report said.

Under a royal decree signed by King Norodom Sihamoni in 2005, the giant barb is designated as Cambodia's national fish.

To stock it in natural water bodies and use it in aquaculture, the Fisheries Administration has been urging hatcheries and breeding stations to conduct research on breeding and incubating the species.

To study their migration and growth, the government agency has also been working with the Mekong River Commission to tag and release giant barbs caught in bagnet fisheries in the Tonle Sap River.

"The reasons for encouraging hatcheries and breeding stations to carry out breeding and incubation experiments are to disseminate the findings to fish farmers because the fish feeds on natural foods, grows fast, and the brood stock can be maintained," the decree says.

"At the same time, its important habitat is deep pools that has been established as protected areas along the Cambodian Mekong River to conserve this endangered species."

The giant barb, found only in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, is carved on the walls of the Angkor temples. In Cambodia, its scales have traditionally been used for making a type of shuttlecock.

Read more at: http://thecambodiaherald.com/cambodia/fisherman-catches-127-kg-giant-barb-in-mekong-delta-7815