Giant Salmon Carp

About Giant Salmon Carp:

• It is also known as the Mekong giant salmon carp, is a species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae and the single species in the monotypic genus Aaptosyax.
• Appearance: The predatory fish can grow up to 4 feet in length, and has a conspicuous knob at the tip of its lower jaw. A striking patch of yellow surrounds its large eyes.
• It is endemic to the middle reaches of the Mekong River in northern Cambodia, Laos and Thailand.
• Its population is much reduced (>90%) as a result of overfishing and habitat degradation.
• Conservation status
  • IUCN: Critically Endangered

Key facts about the Mekong River

• It is the longest river in Southeast Asia, the 7th longest in Asia, and the 12th longest in the world.
• It rises in southeastern Qinghai province, China.
• It originates from the Sanjianyuang in the Tibetan Plateau, with the area designated a national nature reserve to protect the headwaters of the Yangtze, Yellow, and Mekong Rivers.
• It is the river with the most large fish species, including giant freshwater stingrays, giant pangasius, Mekong giant catfish, and giant barb.
• It creates a huge delta, or triangular piece of land, in southern Vietnam. The delta has rich soil and is one of the world’s great producers of rice.

Q1: What is a river delta?

It is a low-lying plain or landform that occurs at the mouth of a river near where it flows into an ocean or another larger body of water. Deltas’ greatest importance to human activities, fish and wildlife lay in their characteristic highly fertile soil and dense, diverse vegetation. 

News: Giant fish thought to be extinct is spotted in the Mekong River

‹ ›