A fish tale: thousands of fish jump onto bridge on Krabi island

A fish tale has come to light on an island in Thailand’s iconic southern province of Krabi. On the island of Koh Lanta, thousands of fish jumped onto a bridge.

A Krabi resident came across the massive pile of small jumping fish while docking his boat at the pier.

The breed of fish is known as “Ta Maew,” or cat-eye fish. Ta Maew is native to Koh Lanta, according to an official at the Krabi provincial fishery office. The official said the fish come to Koh Lanta during two periods, in March and November. It is expected that they make their way to Koh Lanta to lay eggs there.

Krabi resident Sunan Madsaron said that while it’s normal to see the fish swimming along the shore, he had never seen them jump on the bridge. It is still unclear why the thousands of fish jumped onto the bridge, although fish sometimes jump out of water due to low oxygen levels.

It was certainly a lucky day for villagers, who got to take the fish home to cook. Some villagers took enough fish to fill up a fertiliser sack. Whatever the reason behind the mysterious incident, the fish tale has a happy ending, with locals getting free food.