ANN/The Phnom Penh Post – In 2022, a colossal 300-kilogrammes (kg) giant freshwater stingray (Urogymnus polylepis) was discovered in the Mekong River, specifically in Koh Preah commune of Stung Treng province. This remarkable find has now earned official recognition from the Guinness World Records as the largest documented freshwater fish globally, as reported by Wonders of the Mekong.
Supported by the United States Agency for International Development, Wonders of the Mekong took the initiative to attach an acoustic tag to the stingray, affectionately named Boramey, prior to releasing it back into the Mekong River the previous year.
Following its release, valuable data regarding this extraordinary ray has been collected through our acoustic tagging system. This data promises to play a vital role in the protection of this endangered species, as stated in a social media post by Wonders of the Mekong.
Officials from the Fisheries Administration’s Stung Treng provincial cantonment, worked with a team from Wonders of the Mekong and the Inland Fisheries Research and Development Institute of Cambodia to measure the ray, which was caught by fishermen in June 2022.
The specimen was four metre (m) from its head to the end of its tail and 2.2m wide. It weighed 300kg. After the measurements were completed, an acoustic homing tag was attached and it was released back into the wild.
Cambodian biodiversity researcher Sok Vichea explained at the time that while the kingdom is home to 15 types of fresh water and ocean stingrays, the giant freshwater ray was nearly extinct, with few known to remain in the Mekong.
He said this species is one of three giant fish known to inhabit the Mekong, along with the Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas) and Mekong giant bard (Catlocarpio siamensis).
“These species exist only in the Mekong in parts of Cambodia, Laos and Thailand,” he said.
