Mekong River, Laos by Asiatravel.com

The Mekong River is one of the worlds major rivers. It is the world's 10th-longest river and the 7th-longest in Asia. (discharging 475 km3/114 cu mi of water annually). Its estimated length is 4,350 km (2,703 mi), and it drains an area of 795,000 km2 (307,000 sq mi).[1] From the Tibetan Plateau this river runs through China's Yunnan province, Burma, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam. All these areas except China and Burma belong to the Mekong River Commission. A South- and Southeast Asian regional association, the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, is named after both this river and the Ganges river. The extreme seasonal variations in flow and the presence of rapids and waterfalls in this river have made navigation extremely difficult. The Mekong basin is one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world. More than 1200 species of fish have been identified and there could be possibly as many as 1700. Fishing is a very important part of the economic activities in the area and a vital source of protein in the local diet. Estimates indicate that some 120 fish species are commercially traded but most of the fishery is based on 1020 species. [4] In the Upper Mekong, the northern part of the river down to the Burma-Thai-Laos border, the river is relatively clear and fast flowing with the influx snowmelt guaranteeing a relatively uniform circumannual flow in the river. The water tends to be neutral, with a pH of 6.9 ranging to 8.2 and the nutrient level is low. In the Lower Mekong area the river is turbid, especially during the rainy season. Due to bank erosion the water gets a rusty-tan colour from the soil. The river temperature in the Lower Mekong varies between 21.1 to 27.8 °C (7082 °F) and the pH fluctuates between 6.2 to 6.5. The two main biotopic areas in the river follow the division between the Upper and Lower Mekong. The fish in the fast-flowing upper reaches are dominated by different loaches (Cobitidae), sucker catfish (Sisoridae), hillstream loach (Homalopteridae) and carp (Garrinae). The slower middle and lower parts of the river are dominated by species of carp (Cyprinidae), catfish (Siluridae, Clariidae, Schilbeidae, Bagridae, Sisoridae and Akysidae) and murrels (Chanidae and Ophicephalidae). No other river is home to so many species of very large fish. The biggest include the giant river carp (Probarbus jullieni), which can grow up to 1.5 metres (4 ft 11 in) and weigh 70 kilograms (150 lb), the Mekong Freshwater Stingray (Himantura chaophraya), which can have a wingspan of up to 14 feet, the giant pangasius (Pangasius sanitwongsei), Siamese giant carp (Catlocarpio siamensis) and the endemic Mekong giant catfish (Pangasianodon gigas), all three of which can grow up to about 3 metres (9 ft 10 in) in length and weigh 300 kilograms (660 lb). All of these are in serious decline, both because of dams and flood control and overfishing.[5] One species of freshwater dolphin, the Irrawaddy dolphin (Orcaella brevirostris), was once common in the whole of the Lower Mekong but is now very rare.[6] Among other wetland mammals that have been living in and around the river are the smooth-coated otter (Lutra perspicillata) and fishing cat (Felis viverrina). The endangered Siamese crocodile (Crocodylus siamensis) is reported to occur along the Mekong but is very rare. Info Taken from Wikipedia.com Credits to Wikipedia.com http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mekong Main