Saving the King of River : Kelah in Tasik Banding, Hutan Belom, Perak

Travelog date: Sept 15, 2008

Pulau Banding & Hutan Belom, Perak

No 'ordinary fish' story 

Dr Johnson showing
how to handle the goldenmahseer without giving any
stress or harm to thefish 

I am no angler, nor do i know much about fish. But when it comes to eating fish – anything goes. Ikan air tawar ke, ikan laut ke...anything, I am telling you, anything (jangan ikan buntal dah la).



view of tasik banding
from my room

 Setengah orang kata ikan sungai hanyir, tapi kalau dah basuh ngan air asam, garam, buat masak lemak cili padi, i can be sure finish few pieces (if the fish is cut of course, otherwise beberapa ekor la). Or give me the ikan keli (catfish) or haruan (snakehead), bakar dulu then cicah ngan kicap, cili, air asam...or masak lemak cili padi ...mesti habis punya. Ikan laut – takyah cerita la.

Even fish from colder water – then we shall have grill fish for dinner.



landmark bridge across
Tasik Banding



But ask me to name the species of fish, I would go blank, especially fresh water varieties. Just like my knowledge on other animal species (like snake in the previous entry) is limited, the same goes to fish. How to distinguish ikan sebarau from ikan lampam, ikan tengas, temoleh, loma...I used to call them ikan putih coz of the silvery white scales, and watch them move under water – really beautiful especially when the sun hit the scale and reflect it. And they have lotsa bones, small, lethal and so scary to the faint hearted.

Yet, why some people, just would drool every time when they hear these kinda fish, despite the bones? Its the taste – of course!

No pain no gain so good things do not come easy.

Like the thorns on roses, poisonous venom on those colourful frogs – these bones serve as part of the fish defense mechanism – otherwise everyone, human and animal would wallop them all. At least with the bones, human and animal alike will think twice before eating them hehehe.

What more if you mention IKAN KELAH (Malaysian golden Mahseer scientifically known as Tor Tombroides). Well those from Perak might have heard of Sungai Kelah but I doubt many young ones have ever seen the fish where the place has gotten its name from.



The restaurant
at the Pulau Banding Resort



What is so special about this fish?

Anglers will drop everything they do and turn when heard about the fish. The fish fighting spirit making it one of the challenging catch and catching it will be a big achievement in the sport. (I am sure many would tell an endless tale about how tough they fought with the fish and how close they were in landing the fish – but how many actually succeeded in catching the fish).

It is also gourmet’s delight. Many have vouched that the fish is so yummy-licious and even the scales are edible, so they say. The flesh has smooth and fine texture, the kind that they say (well I personally have never eaten one, only touched the life one) will ‘melt in your mouth’. (I believe it has to be an acquired taste to enjoy something like that). Even the scales can be turned into chips – fried into crunchy chips. How true is it, I seriously have never seen it. The fish can fetch such a high price, usually about RM30 per kg but some people are even willing to pay up to RM100 per kg for it.



Debris from logging
activity upstream is
threatening the
kelah population



Combined the facts that this fish is one of the most sought after by anglers and gourmet lovers alike have lead to steady depletion of this fish, and almost to an extend of near extinction. That is perhaps the reason why Sungai Kelah does not have any more ikan kelah in it.

The authority is doing all its best to save the kelah population from becoming extinct.

Various fish sanctuary have been created to breed and increase the fish population (especially in the river at the National Park, Pahang), control and regulated fishing activities which include the catch and release concept (you can catch but then you have to release them – provided they are not dead of course – oh yes, take a lot of photos as proof of testimony). In the Royal Hutan Belum, Perak, the fish is a protected species so no one can catch them without the permit. However, the Orang Asli has the right to catch them for their own consumption.

Well, that is their right to harvest from the forest, that does not mean that they have the right to own it. (Akta Org Asli 134 - Hak orang asli: Hak merayau & mengambil hasil - dari alam semula jadi utk makanan sendiri spt buah2an, ikan, rotan, petai, etc tetapi bukan hak untuk menebang pokok2 selain dari untuk kegunaan sendiri atau pun hak terhadap tanah hutan). By logic, the orang asli who lives in traditional villages, will only take whatever they need for a day’s consumption (because they do not have fridge to store the excess food).



crossing the hanging bridge
to get to the kelah
fish sanctuary in one of
rivers in Tasik Banding

 However, now, there are people who would commission these orang Asli to catch or take out the forest produce including ikan kelah. So when the authority nabbed these unscrupulous people carrying these protected species including ikan kelah, they usually will say that, those are ‘gift’ from the orang asli – and they can get away scoot free.

“One of the biggest obstacles faced by the authorities is that the fish has a very slow growth rate.

“It takes almost 3 years for a hatchling to grow up to 3kg and amazing 30 years for it to grow up to 8kg, depending on its environment and food sources,” said Prof Dr RONALD JOHNSON, a freshwater fish expert from University of Mississippi, USA.

This makes the kelah one of the slowest-growing fish in the country, said the expert who visited Tasik Banding to study our ‘raja sungai – kelah’.

(So next time if you hear someone bragging that they almost, that’s the word, ALMOST land a 20kg kelah, you know what to say!)

But on the good side, this fish can live up to 100 years, if they do not land in someone’s dinner plate. Well, they can even outlast most of us human – provided we do not be above them on the food chain.



me holding the kelah's scale
(should I ask for royalty
from Kosmo?)



Dr Johnson, the expert also told that the fish's scale can be used as the fish footprint (not a title of another blog yeah) which tells a story about the fish life. The circles and patterns on the scale tells about the fish's age, the environment its been throughout its life, whether there was any stress or pollution, and the level of nutrient the fish has taken from its food, whether it was feeding on nutritious food or there's plenty of toxins in the body  (time for the fish to go to the fish spa!).

Another good reason for protecting the fish is that it can be used as an indicator of the health of the river and its ecosystem, much like trout in colder countries. Unlike the giant snakehead (toman), which can thrive in dirty and still waters, kelah thrive only in clean and well-oxygenated waters, which explains why flowing rivers are their preferred choice of habitat.

When the water is contaminated, polluted or become murky which affected the oxygen level, the kelah will die or fail to breed (fussy kinda fish aint it).

Dr Mashhor Mansur

A kelah will breed twice a year and once its cycle is missed, it will take them another six months to spawn again, explained Dr Mashhor Mansur, a professor from University Sains Malaysia, who leads a team to conduct the study on potential kelah breeding in several rivers in Hutan Belum. (Six months, more like human pulak, hehe)

(Note: Tasik Banding and the Banding Island/Pulau Banding is part of the Royal Belum Forest Reserve, a protected area with its natural wealth beyond ones imagination. The Royal Belum Forest Reserve is bordered with the HalaBala Forest Reserve, on the Thailand side, up north)

Potential Kelah Sanctuary

The fish eat both fruits (which falls from the trees on the river bank) and smaller fish as well. One thing they share with salmon is their breeding habit. They (both male and females) would race upstream to the shallower water to spawn.

Like salmon, they too jump occasionally when faced by obstacles like rocks. Once found suited area upstream, with good oxygenated (strong current) and clear flowing water, they will find a spot with a lot of rocks to hide their eggs. They will release their eggs either near the rock or on the rock and once hatch, the fries will feed on the algae on the rock itself (buka je mata dah boleh makan, kalau tak kena makan la that is).

Oh yes, mind you, this fish can bite too – just like the notorious toman.