You know that big shark back in the province? I ATE THAT!
One of Rex Navarrete’s funniest comic bits is when he describes his uncle watching Animal Planet and pointing out the fact that the he claimed to have eaten all the animals shown on TV. Recently, life immitated Rex’s art off the Burias island in central Philippines when a few of our kababayan fishermen accidentally caught a rare megamouth shark… and ate it!
Credit: Elson Aca – World Wildlife Fund, Philippines
Rare megamouth shark caught, eaten in Philippines – AP, Yahoo!
Here are the beginning sentences of the Wikipedia entry for the Megamouth shark:
The megamouth shark, Megachasma pelagios, is an extremely rare and unusual species of deepwater shark. Discovered in 1976, only a few have ever been seen, with 41 specimens known to have been caught or sighted as of 2009 and three recordings on film.
Yes folks, our fisherman accidentally stumbled upon one of the rarest animals on the planet and instead of seizing the opportunity to advance our understanding of this creature, they decided to make supersized pulutan. That’s 1,100 pounds of a potentially endangered species served up deep fried with rice, tomatoes, salted egg and San Miguel beer.
I wasn’t there but I can only speculate some of the rationale behind eating the 41st encountered specimen of this shark.
7 Reasons the Pinoys ate the Megamouth shark:
1. It was going to spoil
I can just imagine the lola of one of the fishermen complaining that the fish was going to go bad so they needed to cook it immediately.
2. It was Friday during Lent
Eating a rare species of shark is a forgiveable offense if it’s done for religious reasons, right? I mean, it’s either endangered shark or Jollibee Chickenjoy. Shark wins if it’s Friday during Lent.
3. “I’ve never had this before!”
Sure, it’s an exotic dish but considering that only 41 of these sharks have been encountered, it’s a pretty safe bet that NOBODY ELSE HAS HAD IT BEFORE EITHER!
4. Mistaken Identity
Maybe the fishermen thought it was a mutant beast from hell that needed to be slayed then digested to absorb its super powers?
5. Steve Zissou wanted revenge
This only makes sense if you saw the movie.
6. Someone saw an ad for Shark Week and thought it meant eating shark for an entire week.
Nobody is that dumb. Wait, is it the June/July timeframe yet?
And finally…
7. A lot of people in the Philippines are poor and hungry
A megamouth shark may be rare and special but in the eyes of people that are fighting off starvation, it’s just a slightly larger piece of fish that requires a slightly larger fryer. Just because the World Wildlife Fund says an animal is special doesn’t mean that the animal isn’t stupid and worthy of being consumed.
And if you don’t mind me getting off topic here, I still haven’t forgiven the World Wildlife Fund for suing the real WWF – World Wrestling Federation – into changing their name to the lamer WWE – World Wrestling Entertainment. But I digress.
In closing, I present a video tribute to our fallen friend, the Megamouth Shark. As you watch this, reflect on the majesty of the creature. Think of how difficult it was to even capture it on video.
Then think about how it would taste in a sour tamarind broth with some rice.
And now, the greatest shark clip ever put on film. Enjoy.
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19 Responses to “You know that big shark back in the province? I ATE THAT!”
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I had the same exact thought when I read the caption to that picture. “They friggin ate it?!!!!”
The Chinese or Japanese would have eaten it anyways.
if i were a priest i’d transubstantiate moose balls into “fish” and make it fair game for a lenten friday barbecue…
but next sunday, i’m gonna eat the freakin’ easter bunny. rabbit diniguan – a REAL chocolate bunny.
and i’ll paint balut before i hide’em for the kids…
don’t worry, kids – i’ll post my recipes once the filamnation editor gives me a thumbs up. and if s/he doesn’t, i’ll eat HER/IS freakin’ thumb…
.
How did these sharks become endangered in the first place? Oh that’s right! Modern marvels like carriers and subs that highly developed nations employ to protect their own interests. I’m sure there’s other factors, but whoever casts some stones better be free of sin.
This is actually the second time we have captured and consumed this mythical creature. 5-6 years ago, close to the Visayas/Mindanao waters a village captured one and had pictures of them walking through the main st. with giant smiles. From what I remember the WWF told them they couldn’t eat it and had to discard it.
But we all know what happened.
That means of the 41 known megamouths, the people of the Philippine Archipelago has consumed 8% of their population.
Paaccaaaccckkk!!!
Hi,
Does anyone know if there are domestic flights to Burias Island from Manila? Kindly reply as this request is somewhat time sensitive.
Thanks,
AR
Anymore shark left in the freezer?
We need Anthony Bourdain to come back and experience this one!
I wonder if this is good with Mang Tomas? (Wait!, anything is good with some Mang Tomas…)
Mannnn. I bet that Sinigang was incredible.
Dude… growing up, I had shark semi-regularly. It was probably my favorite dish back then.
Is it wrong that drool at the thought of megamouth shark?
hahaha…I couldn’t stop laughing when I saw this
“Yan said a WWF Donsol Project Manager Elson Aca took pictures of the megamouth and tried to dissuade the fishermen from eating it.”
You see? This never would have happened if only people listened to Elson.
Hello everybody.
And happy Easter too.
Of course I ave not been here for a long time.
Thank you Mr. Moonie.
For posting this article.
Of course I am interested
Because it is about fish,
Now I know all of you have been wondering
“What would the Fishman do?”
And my response would be
HOLY LORD THAT IS A BIG FISH!
Of course I would eat it.
I do not blame the fishermen.
In fact one of them is my cousin.
The love of fish runs in the family.
p.s. I like fish.
I wonder if sharksticks are similar to fishsticks….only bigger in my mouth.
“The Greatest Shark clip ever!”
HAHAHAHA, exaaaaaactly!
Dude the shark was put in this world for us to entertain our self and to feed the needy. Just imagine BBQ shark meat with tomato and onoin.
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