A catfish of this size can easily swallow an adult, as evidenced by official data. Some experts claim that there are cannibal catfish. But such statements have no scientific evidence. If human corpses are found in the belly of a river giant, it is assumed that the people were already dead. Simply put, these people drowned in due time, and only after that they were swallowed by a catfish.
Nowadays, the number of large catfish has sharply decreased due to the difficult environmental situation, as well as uncontrolled human fishing. In addition, modern gear has enormous potential in terms of catching fish. Despite this, weighty underwater predators are still occasionally encountered. In order not to be unfounded, we can present to your attention an overview of the largest catfish in the world, caught not so long ago.
Manta
The manta ray is the largest of all species of rays existing today. The body width of individual representatives reaches 9.1 m, and the weight of some of them reaches 3 tons. They are not as common, but can still be found in tropical, subtropical and temperate waters.
Manta rays have three pairs of limbs and no tail spine. With its huge mouth, the sea devil (this is another name for manta rays) absorbs water with zooplankton. The water is then released through the gill slits and the food enters the stomach.
Manta rays are not dangerous to humans and are not objects of fishing. They have no enemies except large sharks, but their numbers are declining from year to year. In the Maldives, Hawaii and Ecuador, all types of fishing and sale of stingrays are prohibited.
TOP 17 river giants
Russia
Photo: www.apocalypse.fandom.com
Russia holds two records at once: in the 19th century, the largest catfish weighing more than 340 kg and a body length of more than 4 m was caught in the waters of Lake Issyk-Kul. According to local residents, a memorial arch was erected from the fish’s jaw; the memorial sign has not survived to this day.
The second “devil’s horse,” which is what the Slavs called the catfish, considering it the driver of the water, was caught in the Seim River in the Kursk region in 2009. The weight of the fish reached 200 kg, and the length of the body was 3 m. The fact of capture was registered by the regional fisheries inspection.
France
France owns three trophy catches at once; the specimens caught at intervals of more than 5 years were caught in the waters of the Rhine River.
The first trophy fish weighing 111 kg was caught by 4 local fishermen in 1998; with this weight the fish had a body length of 251 cm.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
In 2005, the previous French record was broken by two anglers, also on the Rhine River, they got a trophy weighing 107 kg with a length of 240 cm and a record body volume of 117 cm. The catfish was caught using live bait.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
4 years later, in 2009, a Belgian fisherman caught a giant catfish measuring 254 cm and weighing 119 kg, all on the same river. After a group photo with the trophy, the tourist fisherman released the fish into its native element.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Germany
Fishermen from Germany, as well as their colleagues from France, managed to distinguish themselves three times and catch worthy trophy specimens of catfish.
Back in 2004, two German fishermen were lucky enough to catch a fish with a record weight of 83.7 kg. It is worth noting that the length of the giant was 217 cm, the record lasted 3 years.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Another record was set in 2007, when three anglers led by Alexander Lyubomirovich were fishing on the Neckar River. Closer to midnight, a trophy catfish pecked at a spoon bait. The fisherman, with the help of friends, pulled out of the water a fish weighing 97 kg and a body length of 235 cm.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Already in 2008, a new and absolute record was set, a trophy weighing 98 kg and measuring 239 cm was caught.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Spain
Spanish trophies as a selection, all of the same weight with a difference of 0.4 - 1 kg. The largest catfish caught in Spain was caught in 2007, weighing 103 kg.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
A year earlier, two record specimens of almost the same weight were caught. The first champion pulled 102.4 kg, caught by a Briton on the Ebro River, as evidenced by a photo taken by the tourist fisherman Carl Smith himself.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
The second “champion” was caught in a tributary of the same Ebro River; the weight differed by 0.4 kg from the previous trophy and amounted to 102 kg.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Italy
Two record catfish were caught in Italy, the first giant fish was caught in 2007 in the Po River, the event occurred in March at a water temperature of 9.50 C, which did not prevent the fisherman from pulling a trophy weighing 118 kg ashore, although he himself had to go into the water.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
The second trophy was caught by two Hungarian fishermen in March 2010; the event took place on a flooded sand spit in the delta of the same Po River. The weight of the catfish was 136 kg.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Greece
Yes, Greece also has som, as they say: Greece has everything. Proof of this is the capture of a trophy in the waters of the Polifito reservoir of the Alikmon River in 2004, a catfish weighing 127 kg and 263 cm long.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
In 2022, in the same place using trolling, a 152-kilogram catfish was caught.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Bulgaria
Bulgarian fishermen are less fortunate, as they currently own only one record fish. The event took place at midnight on the last day of June 2007; it was a catfish weighing 113 kg; the fisherman had to fight the giant alone, showing all his skill.
Photo: www.euro-som.de
Interesting facts about catfish
- The average size of catfish in Russia varies from 5 to 30 kilograms. Specimens of the maximum size are very rare and catching them requires luck and skill.
- Rumors about radioactive catfish living in the territory of Pripyat are partly not rumors. Background radiation is still present in those places, and therefore many inhabitants of reservoirs continue to receive radiation. Sometimes this leads to mutations, but not to supergiant sizes.
- Catfish prefer to stick to the bottom, and therefore often feed on carrion remaining on the bottom.
- They go out to feed early in the morning and late in the evening - this is the best time for fishing.
- They lead a sedentary and sedentary lifestyle, rarely leaving their “native” places.
- The catfish's whiskers attract fish by imitating the movements of worms, which serves as a trap for many.
Guinness book
Based on the results of our top, we can understand that the largest catfish in the world included in the Guinness Book is a trophy caught in the Mekong River. Many ecologists are still guessing as a result of what events the local species of catfish could gain a weight of almost 300 kilograms with a length of no more than three meters. After being caught, this catfish died almost immediately. But it's still interesting to imagine the size it could reach if it were placed back in the river.
Catfish cannibals - fiction or reality?
There is an opinion that large fish can attack a person if there is an opportunity for this. But this is not true:
- the catfish is not a hunter, but more of a scavenger;
- It is also worth taking into account the actual size of the fish - individuals exceeding 40-50 kilograms and capable of attacking a person are extremely rare;
- larger catfish live at greater depths than those used by swimmers for their own purposes;
- Human remains found in the stomachs of various catfish after a documentary examination indicated that the catfish was already feeding on a corpse and did not attack a living person.
Although cases of attack are extremely unlikely and have not been proven, you should be more careful about your time on the pond and carefully find out about local peculiarities before swimming.
Cannibal from Turkey
Back in the last century, in 1970, a catfish was caught in Turkey, the length of which reached almost two meters. A little later, fishermen decided to open his stomach and found the body of a woman there. Later it turned out that the woman drowned and only after that she was eaten by a catfish.
Huge catfish from Italy
| Weight: | 114 kg |
In 2011, another huge catfish was caught. This time the place of catch was sunny Italy. Local fisherman Robert Godey went with his friends to catch some small bream. Imagine their surprise when, instead of bream, the hook turned out to be a huge one weighing 114 kilograms and 2.5 meters long. The men tried long and hard to pull out the underwater enemy, and an hour later he was already on the shore. The Italians took a photograph and then released the predator back into the pond.
Tiger and white sharks
The tiger belongs to the family of gray sharks. People often call it leopard print. The maximum length of this individual is almost 6.5 m. The weight can reach up to one and a half tons.
In their natural habitat, these representatives of the fauna can be seen in subtropical and tropical salty waters throughout the entire planet. Their main difference is the absolute absence of disgust, since these sharks eat absolutely everything as food. After cutting open the stomachs of these individuals, they found animal hair, cow hooves, garbage, including cans of cans, cigarette packs and even bags of coal.
Tiger sharks are considered scavengers, and there have also been recorded cases of cannibalism. One day, while catching one tiger shark, another one swam up and ate it. But she was not satisfied with this, destroyed the bait, and then got caught on the hook.
Fifth place in the ranking of the largest fish living in the oceans and seas is occupied by the great white shark, which grows up to 5.3 m. The maximum weight is almost 2 tons. Despite the fact that it is tiger sharks that swim most often in shallow waters , more cases of attacks on people were registered with the participation of a white woman. For example, in the 2000s, about 150 attacks of this individual on people were observed, 30 of which resulted in the death of the victims.
Based on statistical data, we can conclude that great white sharks are considered the most dangerous to people compared to other breeds of this species. Acts of attacks by these creatures on large boats and boats have been recorded. They pushed the ship with its muzzle. The impact was so powerful that those on deck fell into the water and the boat capsized.
White sharks are considered the most dangerous shark species
Despite the fact that white sharks cannot be called omnivores, like tiger sharks, for example, they also like to try everything to their liking. But if a predator is given a choice of different foods, she will choose what she has already tried. If such a choice is not given, then the individual will eat what is offered to it. Quite often, white sharks mistake divers for pinnipeds, which this fish eats with great pleasure.
The movie Jaws, which was directed by famous director Steven Spielberg, shows viewers that these sharks are some kind of human-killing machines. In fact, these creatures eat food that is familiar to them and almost never hunt humans for a specific purpose.
The polar shark has expressive features
French catfish
| Weight: | 120 kg |
A giant from France, which, unlike previous trophies, was caught intentionally. The catch site was the Rhone River. Usatiy was caught by Yuri Grisendi, who purposefully catches river catfish. As the fisherman himself admitted, this was his hobby, and therefore it was much easier to find an approach to the next catch than for any other fisherman. The weight of the “Frenchman” reaches 120 kilograms, the size of the catfish is about 2.6 meters.
Yuri Grisendi's fishing was of sporting interest, and therefore the caught fish was released immediately after the spectacular photograph, which spread like lightning among Internet users.
Giant freshwater manta ray
The opaque rivers of Borneo, New Guinea, Australia, and East Asia are the favorite habitats of the giant freshwater stingray. The largest representative of eagle rays was caught in China. The body length of a large manta ray was 4.5 m, weight – 500 kg.
A characteristic feature of the river stingray are dangerous poisonous spines 40 cm long. As soon as the stingray senses danger, it shoots these spines and pierces the skin of the enemy. The blow is so strong that it easily pierces the bottom of the boat and the skin of the bull.
People swimming in coastal waters and fishermen can suffer from stingrays. No one fishes for them, but the stingrays themselves end up in nets.
Habitats
Catfish is a heat-loving fish; it is rarely found in cold latitudes; rare specimens are smaller in size. He feels much more comfortable in the southern part of Russia and Europe.
Large populations of catfish are found in the Volga, Dnieper, Ural, and in the area of the Azov and Black Seas. Although catfish prefer fresh water, a slight brackishness will not harm them.
Freshwater predators live at depth and seek shelter in holes. They can settle in aquatic thickets, flooded buildings, under steep ravines. Due to their large size and fear of light, they avoid shallow water, but if necessary they move to shallower depths.
Som from Poland
| Weight: | 200 kg |
Was caught on the Oder River. It is famous for the fact that a human corpse was found in the stomach. According to the forensic examination, the animal was not the cause of the person’s death. It's likely that the huge catfish found the body on the bottom and simply did what is normal in the animal kingdom - ate it. More information about the myth that the catfish is a cannibal can be found at the end of the article.
Beluga
Beluga is the largest representative of the sturgeon family. Lives in the Black, Azov and Caspian seas. The weight of modern specimens of this type of large fish can reach one and a half tons, and the length is often over four meters. Beluga is called a migratory fish because it spawns only in rivers with fast currents. Females lay eggs every four years, which are the most valuable among all sturgeons. The life expectancy of the beluga reaches 100 years, but due to incessant poaching, only rare individuals can live to such a respectable age.
Beluga is a predator and feeds on herring, gobies, and shellfish in the sea. It is an endangered species, but can hybridize with sturgeon, thorn, sterlet and stellate sturgeon. Russian scientists have developed a hybrid of beluga and sterlet, the so-called bester, which is grown in fish farms and introduced into the Sea of Azov.
