Mekong giant catfish being driven to extinction in natural habitat

[rooster59]

Mekong giant catfish being driven to extinction in natural habitat

By Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation
Chiang Rai

 

 

SURVIVAL OF THE Mekong giant catfish is at a critical point, with the species on the brink of extinction in the wild due to development projects along the Mekong River, experts have warned.

 

Meanwhile, local people said they feared their traditional culture associated with catching Mekong giant catfish would slowly disappear.

 

The Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas) is ranked as critically endangered on the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The largest freshwater fish in the world, its natural habitat is the Mekong River from China to Cambodia and Tonle Sap Lake in Cambodia.

 

Full story: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/national/30304563

 

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 20107-01-21

[elgordo38]

Funny I thought a topic of this importance would be overflowing with comments. Guess we have reached the age of complacency.

[F4UCorsair]

What do we say?  

 

It is a tragedy,  but probably no TV posters can offer any constructive advice on what to do, so it may not be complacency, but a case of,  "What can i add?" 

 

The problem is in convincing those killing it to stop doing so, but they need to eat, and knowing the Chinese', particularly, propensity for eating ANYTHING,  I think it's a one way street for the giant catfish, unfortunately.

Edited January 21, 2017 by F4UCorsair

[meatboy]

just go into certain cash and carry stores and see the amount of freezers full of it.

[AgMech Cowboy]

It is a great shame. The big catfish in the Rio Grande disappear back in the 60's. My Dad had to quit fishing there because the results continued to dwindle. I don't know after the creation of Lake Amistad if the bigger catfish recovered or not. I haven't been there in 40+ years.

[Skeptic7]

The sad reality...

Edited January 22, 2017 by Skeptic7
Duplicate

[Skeptic7]

The sad reality...Us!

 

"The current extinction rate is approximately 100 extinctions per million species per year, or 1,000 times higher than natural background rates. They also predict that future rates may be as much as 10,000 times higher."

http://www.iflscience.com/plants-and-animals/current-extinction-rate-10-times-worse-previously-thought/

[rickudon]

In the wild it is almost certainly doomed. Fortunately due to it's high growth potential it is artificially propagated on fish farms for stocking in both commercial and sport fisheries. The large size means it is very sought after by anglers and that alone is enough to ensure that it will be propagated for the foreseeable future.

[gadget monger]

On 1/21/2017 at 3:12 PM, F4UCorsair said:

What do we say?  

 

It is a tragedy,  but probably no TV posters can offer any constructive advice on what to do, so it may not be complacency, but a case of,  "What can i add?" 

 

The problem is in convincing those killing it to stop doing so, but they need to eat, and knowing the Chinese', particularly, propensity for eating ANYTHING,  I think it's a one way street for the giant catfish, unfortunately.

 

You're kidding me, your words... "TV posters can offer any constructive advice on what to do"

 

The Mekong river originates in China.  When it stops being part of China it travels a thousand kilometers through Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand.  How did the Chinese  reduce the Catfish population?

Edited January 22, 2017 by gadget monger
typo

[F4UCorsair]

1 hour ago, gadget monger said:

 

You're kidding me, your words... "TV posters can offer any constructive advice on what to do"

 

The Mekong river originates in China.  When it stops being part of China it travels a thousand kilometers through Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand.  How did the Chinese  reduce the Catfish population?

 

You missed highlighting "no" !!!

 

i don't believe that anybody posting here can offer anything positive, other than, "What a tragedy.   I wish the Chinese, particularly, would stop killing and eating them."  That is of course, unless we have a number of experts in fish breeding, experts on the life cycle of the catfish??

 

I didn't say, exclusively the Chinese, but "particularly".   There is a far greater population of Chinese in proximity to the Mekong, so one would think, as I said in my earlier thread, and knowing the Chinese propensity for eating ANYTHING, they would be taking as many of the catfish as they can, being a ready source of protein.  Of course Asians, generally, eat almost anything.

 

I know nothing of the spawning habits of the Giant Mekong Catfish, but many fish travel upstream to spawn, which may put larger numbers in China, plus the young.  You'll notice I said "may", not will??

 

Gawd.....it seems everyone comes here looking for a fight.   It's a forum for God's sake, discuss, don't attack!!!   Sorry I mentioned the damned Chinese.

[F4UCorsair]

Too late to edit, but my last sentence should read.....

 

Sorry I mentioned the damned, HUNGRY Chinese!!

[toybits]

On 23/01/2017 at 6:35 AM, F4UCorsair said:

Too late to edit, but my last sentence should read.....

 

Sorry I mentioned the damned, HUNGRY Chinese!!

Restaurants in Bangkok are on the speed-dial of these fishermen's mobile phones.  Don't kid yourself. The cause is local demand. These restaurants are willing to pay thousands of baht per kg of Giant Catfish meat. The higher amount they pay, the more incentive to hunt. Unfortunately the fish that are being taken are the breeding pairs. The Inland Fisheries Department says they are doing their best to "preserve" the species by inducing the fish to spawn before they are butchered for their meat. Question.... Where are the Giant Catfish fries released into?  What I heard was that they were released into private ponds. None of the fingerlings are returned to the Mekong River.

[wolfmuc]

Some weeks ago I read somewhere(?) that Chinese authorities were starting to dredge the Mekong, especially blowing up river cliffs.

Main reason was/is to boost shipping. - I don’t know about the giant catfish, but often fish prefer to breed near obstacles.

So, this might add to the decrease in the future too.

As F4UCorsair said: ‘What do we say? It is a tragedy…’  

[toybits]

20 hours ago, wolfmuc said:

Some weeks ago I read somewhere(?) that Chinese authorities were starting to dredge the Mekong, especially blowing up river cliffs.

Main reason was/is to boost shipping. - I don’t know about the giant catfish, but often fish prefer to breed near obstacles.

So, this might add to the decrease in the future too.

As F4UCorsair said: ‘What do we say? It is a tragedy…’  

Rapids are essential to river life. Rapids are the lungs of the river. Without rapids, air would not be incorporated into the river water. The Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) would increase. Marine life would suffocate! End of story.

[rickudon]

Mekong catfish do not cost thousands of baht per kilo. I can buy it in Makro. Not cheap, but not expensive. Many fry are indeed stocked into private ponds, but a lot are stocked into large reservoirs, for both sport and local commercial fishermen. The problem with the Mekong is that unless there are internationally agreed quotas, regulations etc between all the countries in the Mekong basin it is pointless to stock anything when the foreign chap netting the other side of the river can harvest the fish you have just stocked.