VietNamNet Bridge – A restaurant in District 3 in HCM City on January 12 bought a red giant barb (Catlocarpio siamensis) from a trader in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang.

The fish weighs up to 130kg, 1.5m long. It was caught by fishermen on the Mekong River.

The restaurant did not disclose the amount they paid for the giant fish but based on the market price, the fish was estimated at about VND500 million ($25,000).

Giant barbs live in the Mekong River and follow this river through Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam.

In Vietnam, they are found in the Tien and Hau rivers, two affluents of the Mekong River, and some of them may grow as big as 300 kilograms. Big mature fish have become rare today as they are sought by fishermen.

In the last few years, Vietnamese fishermen have caught giant barb weighing 100kg-200kg and all of them were sold to restaurants in HCM City.

Le Ha