The 'monster' fish uses its antennae to detect and eat pigeons

When pigeons swoop into the river to bathe, this fish uses its sharp antennae to detect and then wait for the opportunity to jump out of the water and catch the "eaten" prey.

For the first time, Frédéric Santoul, a fish ecologist at the University of Toulouse, witnessed the gluttony of Europe's largest freshwater fish. That's when he was standing on a medieval bridge in Albi, a town in the south of France.

Below the bridge is the River Tarn. At that time, the pigeons were flying gently, seemingly not paying attention to the catfish moving near the gravel. Suddenly, a fish jumped out of the water, grabbed a dove in a split second, grabbed the prey in its mouth, and disappeared into the water. It is a European catfish (wels catfish).

European catfish.

In 1794, a German fisherman released several thousand catfish into the Ebro River in Spain. In the hope of catching a lot of big fish, fishermen in many countries also do the same, thereby creating conditions for this creature to thrive.

Over the decades, European catfish populations have been relatively stable. But in new rivers, the species often targets commercially important and endangered fish such as herring and Atlantic salmon.

Fish ecologist Santoul once expressed concern that European catfish could wipe out many native fish species in Western Europe, changing the river ecosystem, which is heavily affected by water pollution as well as water pollution. overfishing.

This creature could wipe out many fish species native to Western Europe.

Returning to the story of the town of Albi mentioned above, large European catfish like "monsters" were brought here about 40 years ago. They have proliferated rapidly, nearly wiping out the local fish populations. And now, they're starting to enjoy hunting pigeons.

Pigeon hunting fish.

This species is also considered a "fierce god" for birds. The birds often go to the river to bathe, preen their feathers to remove dirt and cool their bodies. When swooping down to the surface of the water, the oil from their feathers flows downstream and is soon discovered by "death" lurking below.

The "monster" fish uses its antennae to detect and eat pigeons

Due to poor eyesight, European catfish use their antennae to sense the movement of their prey. It can be said that this is a new hunting strategy with a type of fish that often lives on the bottom of the river. As for pigeons, after thousands of years living in cities, they must now learn to avoid this "monster" fish.