By Jeff Pfeiffer
“The biggest fish we’ve seen! A real-life Loch Ness monster.”
That’s how biologist Zeb Hogan describes a creature encountered in one of the new summer episodes of National Geographic Channel‘s popular Hooked series, which journeys across the globe with anglers and scientists to see the most extreme encounters in megafishing, and the research being done to protect these fish.
From a colossal squid weighing more than half a ton, to a nearly 12-foot-long stingray, there are some real whoppers found in these summer premieres:
Hooked: Vampire Fish — June 29, 10pm ET/PT. Close-up encounters with monster fish armed with mouthfuls of razor-sharp teeth. In the Amazon, scientist Dr. Justin Grubich tries to record the dental imprints of the pacu — a cousin of the piranha with human-looking teeth and jaws — and the so-called “vampire fish.” The latter fish is nicknamed for its two-inch fangs, which can help the animal literally suck blood. Next, in the Congo, the hunt is on for the Goliath tiger fish, an elusive monster with teeth like a dragon and the fighting fury of a pit bull. Then it’s off to Australia to see a group of fishing daredevils reeling in a great white shark by swimming bait out into shark-filled waters, then pulling in the catch from shore, using a vehicle. Finally, the episode brings us face-to-face with the alligator gar of the southeastern United States.
Hooked: Monster Fish of Thailand — July 6, 10pm ET/PT. This episode follows Zeb Hogan on part of his five-year Megafishes Project, a study supported by the National Geographic Society. In Thailand, Hogan tries to get a closer look at the elusive freshwater stingray. Although discovered only 20 years ago, the fish is already on the “vulnerable” list. Cameras capture Hogan as he dives into the murky water to learn more about the rays’ mysterious behavior, and as he hooks the biggest one he’s ever seen.
Hooked: Monster Fish of Mongolia — July 13, 10pm ET/PT. Zeb Hogan continues his quest to find and protect the world’s biggest freshwater fish, this time in the frigid waters of Mongolia. There he seeks the Hucho taimen, an oversized version of the trout. They can grow to 6 feet, weigh up to 200 pounds and eat almost anything, including muskrats, squirrels and ducks.
Hooked: Monsters of the Deep — July 20, 10pm ET/PT. In this episode, commercial fishermen hook the largest invertebrate in the world — a colossal squid. These megamonsters rarely rise the thousands of feet from their home in the depths of the ocean to surface, making this catch (after a three-hour battle) one of a kind. Also in this show, an expert tries to reel in a 1,400-pound tiger shark that’s bigger than his boat, and British anglers battle with a conger eel, which can reach lengths of 9 feet and weigh more than 250 pounds.
And in other episodes, NGC tells us to expect:
* A catfish the size of a grizzly bear
* A snakehead fish that walks on land
* A 1,000-pound marlin with a deadly sharp bill
* Fishing rituals in Papua New Guinea
* Fanatic fishermen who use their own arms as bait
In addition to thrills, this series also looks at the environmental challenges that these megafish — some of which have been around since the age of dinosaurs — face. As producer/filmmaker Dean Johnson says, “Most of the species I film won’t be on this planet in the next 50 years, and each time I look through the viewfinder I realize the images we’re capturing will be telling a story that others may never have the opportunity to see.”
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Zeb Hogan/National Geographic Society
