National Geographic Society

  • Connect:

Monster Fish of Mongolia

Published
  • Mongolian fishing camp.
  • Gana, a Sweetwater guide, with a taimen in the Uur River.
  • Eg-Uur Valley, Sweetwater Camp in Mongolia. For five seasons, host Zeb Hogan and a team of scientists have studied the Mongolian taimen: their feeding habits, migratory range and reproductive cycles. They hope to create a conservation plan for the taimen in the Eg-Uur Valley.
  • Host Zeb Hogan sits in a motor boat on the Uur River. For five seasons, host Zeb Hogan and a team of scientists have been tagging and collecting data from taimen on a regular basis.
  • Ganzorig, a member of host Zeb Hogan's team, sits overlooking the Eg-Uur Valley. Ganzorig is a graduate student at the National University of Mongolia.
  • Fisherman on horseback near the Upper Uur.
  • Host Zeb Hogan holds a hucho taimen, the world's largest trout, in the Uur River. In Mongolia, trout grow to a monster size: up to six feet long and 200 pounds. Big fish are evidence that a river is healthy, the population is reproductive, and there is plenty of food.
  • Zeb Hogan (right) in traditional Mongolian attire at Science Camp, the field base run by the Taimen Conservation Fund, where Hogan and the team of scientists have been collecting and analyzing data from taimen.

  • Setting Up Camp

    Mongolian fishing camp.

  • Holding a Taimen

    Gana, a Sweetwater guide, with a taimen in the Uur River.

  • Studying the Taimen

    Eg-Uur Valley, Sweetwater Camp in Mongolia. For five seasons, host Zeb Hogan and a team of scientists have studied the Mongolian taimen: their feeding habits, migratory range and reproductive cycles. They hope to create a conservation plan for the taimen in the Eg-Uur Valley.

  • Collecting Data

    Host Zeb Hogan sits in a motor boat on the Uur River. For five seasons, host Zeb Hogan and a team of scientists have been tagging and collecting data from taimen on a regular basis.

  • Student in the Valley

    Ganzorig, a member of host Zeb Hogan's team, sits overlooking the Eg-Uur Valley. Ganzorig is a graduate student at the National University of Mongolia.

  • Riding in the Valley

    Fisherman on horseback near the Upper Uur.

  • Tremendous Trout

    Host Zeb Hogan holds a hucho taimen, the world's largest trout, in the Uur River. In Mongolia, trout grow to a monster size: up to six feet long and 200 pounds. Big fish are evidence that a river is healthy, the population is reproductive, and there is plenty of food.

  • Mongolian Camp

    Zeb Hogan (right) in traditional Mongolian attire at Science Camp, the field base run by the Taimen Conservation Fund, where Hogan and the team of scientists have been collecting and analyzing data from taimen.