Giant catfish empty rivers, turn cannibal

Ducks and even swans on the Isen River in Upper Bavaria have to fear for their lives, Die Welt newspaper reported on Saturday, because they are being targeted by the giant fish.

Fishermen have been alarmed by the increasing number – and size – of the catfish, which have no natural predators and grow their entire lives, the paper reported.

“The fish are not actually known to eat members of their own species, but by now they are also doing this,” Manfred Holzner, head of the local fisherman’s association told the newspaper tz.

Controlling their population is difficult – the fish themselves are notoriously tricky to catch, and nets are generally outlawed in the affected waters, Die Welt said.

The Local/mbw