MANAUS, BRAZIL - A video showing a giant tambaqui being cleaned at a fish market in the municipality of Coari, in Brazil's Amazonas state, has gone viral on social media this week, surpassing 1.4 million views. The footage attracted widespread attention because of the fish's size. Tambaqui is one of the best-known freshwater species in the Amazon and a staple of the region's cuisine, typically sold at markets weighing between 4 and 6 kilograms (9 to 13 pounds).

The video was recorded by content creator Silvio Junior Rodrigues, who documents daily life and culture in the Amazon. In the footage, the fish is cleaned by fisherman and fish vendor Raimundo "Bigode," who has worked in the trade for about 40 years. Rodrigues says the tambaqui weighs 50 kilograms (110 pounds).

According to biologist Endiberg Oliveira, tambaqui weighing more than 30 kilograms (66 pounds) are considered rare, despite the recent circulation of videos featuring unusually large specimens.

"Today, tambaqui weighing more than 30 kilograms are not very common, but in the past we had specimens weighing up to 50 kilograms. One of those fish is preserved at the National Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA) and was caught more than 40 years ago," Oliveira said.

According to the biologist, the growing number of reports of exceptionally large fish may be linked to a combination of factors, including:
• longer lifespans;
• greater food availability; and
• changes in fishing practices over the past decades.

"What may be driving the larger size of tambaqui caught in recent years is a combination of factors, including age, diet and genetics. They may also be living longer because of changes in fishing practices over the past 50 years," he said.

Amazon Agency