The “Mekong ghost” fish is a ghost no more.
Like the legendary Rip Van Winkle, who wandered into the woods and disappeared for 20 years, the giant salmon carp (Aaptosyax grypus) of Southeast Asia’s Mekong River also seemed to vanish into the depths of myth. The megafish had not been documented since 2005, leading many to believe the species had quietly slipped into extinction.
But scientists have now confirmed the discovery of three individuals, caught from 2020 to 2023 in Cambodian waters. The finds reignite hope for the giant salmon carp’s survival, fish ecologist Bunyeth Chan and colleagues report in the November Biological Conservation.
Two of the rediscovered giant
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