Appearance
The head is rather large for the body, with no barbels.The giant barb ranks among the largest freshwater fish in the world, and is probably the largest fish in the family Cyprinidae. It may reach 3 m and weigh up to 300 kg. Among the cyprinids, only the golden mahseer can reach a comparable length, but it is a relatively slender fish that weighs far less. Few large giant barbs are caught today. For example, no individual weighing more than 150 kg has been caught in Cambodia since 1994. Today, the maximum length is about 1.8 m.
This fish is actually tetraploid, meaning it has four of each chromosome.
Distribution
They are usually seen in the big pools along the edges of large rivers, but seasonally enter smaller canals, floodplains, and flooded forests. Young barbs are usually found in smaller tributaries and swamps, but can acclimate to living in ponds, canals, and swamps. The fish generally live in pairs.These are migratory fish, swimming to favorable areas for feeding and breeding in different parts of the year. These slow-moving fish subsist on algae, phytoplankton, and fruits of inundated terrestrial plants, rarely feeding on active animals. In the lower Mekong basin, young giant barbs have been reported as occurring primarily in October.
Status
Today, few barbs live to maturity. The main threats are from habitat loss and overfishing. The sharp population decline is well illustrated by catch data from Cambodia, where 200 tonnes of giant barbs were caught in 1964. By 1980, only about 50 fish were caught, and by 2000, only 10. It was formerly an important fish in local catches below the Khone Phapheng Falls, but surveys between 1993 and 1999 only located a single small individual. Consequently, the giant barb is listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List. It has been entirely extirpated from the Chao Phraya River.In a 2005 royal decree, the Kingdom of Cambodia designated this fauna as the national fish to bring conservation awareness to this species.
In 2005, the giant barb was successfully domesticated and reproduced for the first time at the Vietnam National Breeding Center for Southern Freshwater Aquaculture.
In 2012, it was successfully reproduced in the Breeding Center of An Giang Province of Vietnam.
In 2010, the Vietnam National Breeding Center released 50,000 young giant barbs into the Tien River in Dong Thap province Vietnam, but a survey showed that only few of them survived long enough to reach a weight of over one kilogram.
Habitat
They are usually seen in the big pools along the edges of large rivers, but seasonally enter smaller canals, floodplains, and flooded forests. Young barbs are usually found in smaller tributaries and swamps, but can acclimate to living in ponds, canals, and swamps. The fish generally live in pairs.These are migratory fish, swimming to favorable areas for feeding and breeding in different parts of the year. These slow-moving fish subsist on algae, phytoplankton, and fruits of inundated terrestrial plants, rarely feeding on active animals. In the lower Mekong basin, young giant barbs have been reported as occurring primarily in October.
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