Sometimes we are surprised at something, not knowing and not guessing that truly stunning events are yet to come. So it happened with the heroes of our history today. Two fishermen from Poland managed to catch a giant catfish – one of the oldest on the planet. There was no limit to the surprise, but soon something happened that struck the men much more. Inside the caught fish, Poles were waiting for a stunning surprise. Alfons Brzozowski and Marek Zhdanovich were just fishing on the Oder River, which flows in the south-west of Poland, not even suspecting that they would soon become famous all over the world.
They were amazed even when they realized that they had caught not just a catfish, but a huge catfish! Its length was more than 3.5 meters, and its weight reached almost 200 kg, but further events turned out to be even more surprising. After opening the catfish, the fishermen found fragments of human bones in it, as well as buttons and a metal badge in the form of an eagle from the uniform of SS officers. The Poles immediately contacted the police, after which an investigation began: it was necessary to establish the origin of the remains. Experts have suggested that the man found in the fish died in the early 40s of the last century during the occupation of Poland. The approximate age of the fish was also established – from 90 to 110 years.
How exactly the officer died, the experts could not establish, so the information about whether he was already dead, or he was killed by a catfish, remained unclear. Scientist Patek Loiko explained the situation: «We have only fragments of bones on our hands, most of the skeleton has not been found. In addition, both bones and artifacts were damaged by gastric juice. There is not enough data to establish the exact cause of death.» By the way, the possibility that a catfish killed a person is quite real — zoologists assure that some individuals of this species can eat a cat or a dog, and the largest ones often attack a person. Roman Yusupov, a former hunter and prize-winner of the Yaroslavl region in sport fishing, says that catfish pounce rapidly, and then drag the victim to the depth.
They approach the shore in the late afternoon. Also, some fishermen claim that they know many stories about how a catfish dragged a dog into the water or bit a person. And the huntsmen claim that they have repeatedly seen how these predators attacked deer swimming across the river. People also share stories about how catfish snatch laundry from people’s hands while rinsing it in river water. In the Ukrainian press, you can even find information about cannibal catfish who turned over motorboats trying to get a victim. They say that in the area of the island of Khotritsa, at a depth of 15 meters, a ship with a large hole in which a huge catfish was stuck was once found missing without a trace.
And then the remains of three tourists from Poland, who disappeared with the ship, were found in the fish. Therefore, the opinion that a catfish attacked a German officer and dragged him to the bottom has every reason. Especially considering the nature of this powerful predator. There are cases when people with absolute certainty stated that they themselves had witnessed such incidents. Of course, in order to kill a person, a catfish must be huge, because it usually swallows the victim whole, like a python, and then digests it for just as long. However, there are other opinions.
Many are absolutely sure that catfish are not hunters, but scavengers, and their attack on people is a huge rarity. Perhaps this option deserves attention, because often people are guided only by rumors or their own fears. In addition, many are simply attracted by mysterious events – why not believe in some monster from the underwater depths, going out hunting in the evenings? And what do you think about the discovery of two Polish fishermen? Write about it in the comments, and of course share this video with your friends.
