Goliaths tiger fish can be up to 2.1 meters long and weigh up to 200 kg.
Goliaths tiger fish, locally known as pirarucu, is one of the largest freshwater fish in the world. They live mainly in large rivers flowing throughout the legendary Amazon forest. Goliaths tiger fish can be up to 2.1 meters long and weigh up to 200 kg.
The dry season is the busiest Goliath fishing season of the year. When the river water dries up, Goliath fish often float to the surface for about 15 minutes or more at a time to breathe air.
At this time, Goliaths fish hunters often go by canoe along the river to search and sometimes just use a harpoon to easily catch giant Goliaths fish.
However, while catching Goliaths may be easy, keeping them is not at all simple. Fishermen must use nets to pull fish into the boat and then carefully tie them up or kill them before moving on if they do not want them to struggle and overturn the boat.
Each large tiger fish can be sold for 200 USD/fish. This is the main source of income for people living here.
Tiger fish meat has been considered the main food source of the Amazon people since before Europeans discovered this land. Today, the demand for tiger fish is still great. Although the taste is not delicious, salted tiger fish is creating a fever in this land to the point that it is considered “Amazon cod”. Their bones and scales are also used to develop crafts.
Although legally caught, Goliaths tiger fish were once at risk of extinction due to overhunting and habitat pollution.
The threat is so serious that in 1996, Brazilian authorities banned fishing for Goliath fish in the Amazon region and launched a series of programs to help breed tiger fish.
The ban has now been relaxed but people are only allowed to catch Goliaths fish longer than 1.5 meters. To reach this level, Goliaths tiger fish need at least 3-4 years of living freely in the wild.
