One of the most feared predators lurking in the freshwaters of the Congo river in south Africa. Is the Goliath Tiger Fish. The two most common species and probably most recognizable in South Africa are the Goliath Tiger- Hydrocynus goliath- which tend to be the largest in the Cichlid family. These fish can grow up to 6 feet long and weigh almost 100 lbs! (45kg, for my people who use this unit of weight) That is one big fish! The Goliath Tiger Fish has a vicious reputation of traveling in packs, eating anything and everything in its path, dead or alive. It is one of the only freshwater fish that can effectively kill a predator its size, or even larger. The Goliath Tiger Fish is Africa's version of their South American counterparts, the Piranhas. They gain this reputation as their former are famous for their hunting techniques. They are territorial predators with gas chambers in their body, acting like sound receivers to detect vibrations. This enables them to detect any near by animals,and attack with rows of interlocking teeth, supported by a muscular body. Juvenile Goliath Tiger Fish are known to even attack large animals that stray too close to the waters edge. When an animal is named Goliath, you would imagine a fierce predator, with protruding rows of teeth, vivacious appetite for carcasses and anything it can get its jaws on. And you are correct! Actually, the Goliath Tiger Fish are known to attack any sick members inside the school of fish, and they are also isolated reports on attack of humans. The fish is not only a cannibal, but can also be classified as a potential man eater. The Tiger Fish is a member of the cichlid family of fish, with the differentiation amongst other members of the cichlid family being in its color, size, and overral ferociousness; the Goliath Tiger Fish being at the top of the group when it comes to size and pure viciousness, outclassing other African game fish in agility, speed, and power. Fisherman have a good dose of caution-and warranted respect for the Goliath Tigerfish, a monster so uniquely adapted to the Congo River and its environment, that it was recently described as an example of "evolution on steroids" by the National Geographic.
