MUMBAI: Freshwater detective, biologist and extreme angler Jeremy Wade has spent three decades traveling the world’s waterways in search of man-eaters that lurk beneath the surface of rivers and lakes in some of the most inhospitable locations in the world.
Man-sized piranhas, fish that electrocute, nine-foot river sharks (yes, river sharks) … take a deep dive with Jeremy Wade and bring out these outlandish creatures to your living room weekdays at 8 PM. The world’s greatest angling explorer takes Discovery viewers where no wildlife program has gone before, revealing the creatures that lurk in the murky depths of our planet’s inland waterways. Starting 5 December, River Monsters will air Monday to Friday at 8 pm.
Jeremy grew up in southeast England on the banks of the Suffolk Stour, where his fascination with the underwater world and the desire to see “what’s around the next bend” began. His first overseas trip was to the mountain-rivers of India in 1982, and since then, he has increasingly spent his time tracking down large and little-known fish in rivers around the world – particularly in the Congo and the Amazon rainforests. Over the last thirty years, Jeremy has travelled extensively to India in search of elusive fish in Kali (Brahmaputra), Kauvery and other iconic rivers. At the Kali River, he found a little-known catfish species that can grow to a large size – the Goonch or Giant Devil Catfish. His search continued to find the rare fish, a Golden Mahseer.
In the new episodes of River Monsters airing this December, the journey will continue with Jeremy visiting India in search of Goonch and Mahseer. He also tries fly fishing that takes a lot of practice to get right. Will he be able to compare it to catches of his past? Jeremy heads to Southeast Asia in search of the mythological sea serpent. But will his freshwater knowledge be enough to tackle this monster of the deep? He embarks on an epic mission to reveal the real creature behind the world’s most famous river monster; the Loch Ness Monster. But what will he uncover? Further in Africa’s Rift Valley, rife with killer crocs, hippos and warring gangs, he dives deep for a worthy prize: the Mputa Nile perch. In Papua New Guinea rumours of flesh-eating pacu are haunting locals. How dangerous is this fish and has it really developed a taste for parts of the male anatomy? In the Congo River lurks a super predator. Fast and ferocious, this killing machine has even snatched a local child. Can Jeremy catch this notorious fish?
Why River Monsters?
Nearly half the world’s fish species live in just 0.01% of the world’s water – our lakes and rivers. Yet most people know less about what lives in fresh water than they do about the oceans.
Because some rivers are very hard to get to – and/or too murky to see into, using normal means – many of their inhabitants are rarely or never seen in conventional natural history programs.
River Monsters takes a different approach. Biologist and fishing detective Jeremy Wade starts by examining myths and fishermen’s tales, subjecting them to scientific scrutiny to separate fact from fiction. Then he homes in on his targets using a fishing line. The results are some fish of staggering dimensions and appearance, including some spectacular TV ‘firsts’.
