Pangasius catfish heading for extinction

The Giant catfish, Pangasius (formerly Pangasianodon) gigas, one of the world's largest fishes is heading towards extinction according to the latest IUCN Red List published today.

The catfish, which was classified as endangered in the 2002 Red List, has moved one step further into decline and is now classified as critically endangered due to a drop in numbers from overfishing and habitat degradation.

An assessment of the conservation status of P. gigas showed that the population had declined 80% over the past 13 years.

Conservation by the Thai Department of Fisheries have seen 10,000 captive bred fish reintroduced. Interestingly, breeders have also reported hybrids between P. gigas and the common aquarium pangasiid, Pangasius hypophthalmus (formerly P. sutchi).

The Red List also included a number of other fishes this year, including mainly seahorses and rays.