They ate kingfish without knowing

In Antalya, amateur anglers using a fishing rod with fake bait caught a fish species known as Acanthocybium solandri, also called the 'kingfish,' living in the ocean.

Ersin Karakaş, who caught the fish first seen in Turkish waters, said, "We thought we had caught a different type of bonito and gave it as a gift to a friend. Later, we learned that this fish was first seen in Turkey. Our friend ended up eating the first-ever recorded fish in Turkey."

Amateur fishermen who set out to sea in boats to fish in Antalya caught the Acanthocybium solandri species living in the ocean with a fishing rod equipped with fake bait. The fishermen, who took the Wahoo fish aboard with a length of approximately 110 centimeters and weighing 5 kilograms in just 10 minutes, were ecstatic. They took a souvenir photo with the fish. Thinking they had caught a different type of bonito, the fishermen captured those moments on a mobile phone camera.

INTENSE IN TROPICAL WATERS OF THE OCEAN

The fishermen later gifted the fish to their friends and shared the images with Prof. Dr. Mehmet Gökoğlu from the Faculty of Fisheries at Akdeniz University (AU). Prof. Dr. Gökoğlu, who examined the images, confirmed that the fish was a species never before seen in Turkish waters. Providing information about the species known as the kingfish, Prof. Dr. Gökoğlu said that it is densely populated in tropical regions near the equator in the ocean. He mentioned that the species had been observed in the Mediterranean before, in Italy in 2005 and in Lebanon last January.

FIRST SEEN IN TURKISH WATERS

Prof. Dr. Gökoğlu stated, "This oceanic fish is a predator that lives in clean, shallow waters. This is the first time we've seen the kingfish in Turkey. Fishermen off the coast of Kemer caught this fish with a fishing rod equipped with fake bait. It's a very rare species in the Mediterranean. With the fish being documented, there has been an increase in the number of fish species in Antalya Bay."

FRIEND ATE IT

Ersin Karakaş, who caught the fish, said, "We caught the fish on the water surface with fake bait. We managed to get it aboard after an 8-minute struggle with the fishing rod. We were very excited to catch a big fish with my friends. We thought we had caught a bonito species and gave it to a friend. Later, we learned that the fish we caught was first seen in Turkey. Our friend ended up eating the first-ever recorded fish in Turkey."