Posts tagged "catfish"

Holy mackerel!

Holy catfish, rather. This 15-stone, 4-pound catfish (that's 214 pounds to Yanks like you and me) broke records recently when a woman wrestled the leviathan from a Spanish river while on vacation, reports the (U.K.) Daily Mail. As if that feat wasn't impressive enough, the accomplished angler in question happens to be a mere 5'3" in stature, a grandmother, and legally blind. The superwoman, Shiela Penfold, 56, took 30 minutes to bag the beast.

The monstrous catfish, dragged from the depths of the River Ebro near Barcelona, measured a terrifying 8 feet, 2 inches in length. Penfold used halibut pellets as bait to supplement what we presume is her superhuman strength.

"I was exhausted but elated afterward," Penfold told the Daily Mail. "I'm still walking around with a smile on my face. But it goes to show that just because you are blind it doesn't stop you breaking records like this."

After snapping a few photographs of the catfish that will give you nightmares for the rest of your life, Penfold released her vanquished opponent back into its freshwater home.

It sounds like something straight out of a low-budget horror film, but scientists on the India-Nepal border fear that years of disposing of bodies in the Great Kali River has created a monster. The creature, a type of giant catfish called a "goonch," is thought to be targeting live prey after years of feeding on the remains of burnt bodies, tossed into the river after ritual funeral pyres. Biologist Jeremy Wade is investigating the sensational story for a documentary TV show in Britain.

Wade believes that these giant freshwater fish are behind local legends in which a monster has grown large on a diet of human remains and is now responsible for snatching unsuspecting bathers. Through his research, Jeremy has built a case for the idea that these giant fish, rather than crocodiles, are the likely culprits. Wade actually caught one of these fish that weighed in at 161lbs (73kg). Wow, that's one catfish that I'm not willing to eat with a side of tartar sauce.

Here's a safer, more eco-friendly, burial at sea option.