Washington Post
14 March 2015
The catch took about five hours, and the fishermen had to rotate in shifts to give respites from the back-breaking work. Using a classic rod-and-wheel set-up and aboard a simple, long boat, the scientists and fishermen managed to capture the giant freshwater stingray in Thailand’s Mae Klong River last week.
Then, they measured it: At 14 feet long and 8 feet wide and weighing an estimated 600 to 800 pounds, the creature could be the largest freshwater fish ever captured and recorded. The current record is held by a 693 pound-catfish caught in Thailand in 2005.
The capture was caught on camera and will air on a future episode of ABC’s “Ocean Mysteries with Jeff Corwin.”
Corwin was standing on a 5-acre calcium formation in the middle of Thai waters, looking for bass, when The Post reached him by phone. The conservationist and television show host has been in the country for about a month, filming segments with the help of local fishermen and scientists.
“The science is what makes this epic to me,” Corwin said. “It’s a personal and professional check off my bucket-list.”