Monster of the deep: Chinese fishermen shocked after catching 'mysterious carnivorous creature'

Two fishermen from central China are shocked after they reportedly netted a bizarre-looking fish that is described as vicious and carnivorous.

The mysterious creature was caught on July 16 in Wuhan, Hubei Province, and measured seven feet in length and 220 pounds in weight, reported People's Daily Online.

Pictures of the river fish have been widely shared online in China while media are claiming that the species might date back to the age of dinosaurs.

According to the report, the fish was caught by two fishermen in part of the Yangtze River at around 8am last Saturday.

The two man have been named Zhang Chuanzhou and Zhang Xiaogang and are father and son.

At first, they thought it was a normal Chinese sturgeon, a critically endangered species native to the area.

It's understood that they soon realised it looked too odd and contacted a local reporter. 

An unnamed marine expert told Chinese media that the creature is a hybrid of a Kaluga fish and another unidentified species. 

The expert added that the bizarre fish is not native to the area and could have been released to the waters by someone who had purchased it. 

The fish has been sent to the local wildlife rehabilitation centre.  

Kaluga, which are unique to the Heilongjian Basin in north-east China, are thought to have been around for 130 million years and are among the largest freshwater fish in the world.

An adult Kaluga can weigh more than 1,100 pounds. 

The species is listed as critically endangered as it has been fished almost to extinction for its valuable roe.