Imagine thinking a magnificent, four-foot-long fish was gone forever, only for it to casually swim back into view like it just popped out for milk. That's pretty much what happened with the Mekong giant salmon carp, a critically endangered species that hadn't been seen in Cambodia since 2005. Scientists thought it was a goner. But, plot twist: it's back.
This isn't just one lucky sighting, either. Researchers have confirmed four appearances of this elusive fish since 2020. That's right, four times since 2020, fishers have reeled in what amounts to an aquatic Bigfoot, proving that the species is, in fact, still very much swimming around in the lower Mekong River Basin. Which, if you think about it, is both impressive and slightly terrifying for the fish that just wanted to be left alone.
The Comeback Kid of the River
First described in 1991, the Mekong giant salmon carp (officially Aaptosyax grypus, if you're fancy) only had 20 recorded sightings before it vanished from the record books for 14 long years. Then, Bunyeth Chan and his team from Svay Rieng University in Cambodia started confirming sightings from 2020 to 2023. And just to really drive the point home, a fourth sighting was confirmed in November 2023.
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Start Your News DetoxChan notes that these rediscoveries aren't just good news for one very large fish; they're a huge shot of optimism for the entire Mekong ecosystem. This river system, for those keeping score, is arguably the most productive on Earth, churning out over two million tons of fish annually, worth a cool $10 billion. So, a healthy giant salmon carp population suggests the whole system might be doing a bit better than we feared.
Now, if you'll excuse us, we're off to check under our couches for other supposedly extinct things. You just never know.
