The rancid smell of a rotting fish was too much for an Australian MP who began to retch on camera while given the unenviable task of holding the carcass to make a point criticising the government there.
Independent New South Wales MP Jeremy Buckingham posted the video, in which he talked about the deaths of up to a million fish in the Darling River, on Twitter.
"It's a national disgrace, this one magnificent Murray cod is dead and it absolutely stinks.... Australia you need to hang your head in shame," he said after criticising the river management.
Despite the retching, Mr Buckingham carried on.
"This is what you get when you leave the National Party in charge of water in Australia, dead fish, a massive stink..."
He then put the fish down and began retching again, removing himself and walking out of shot. Two farmers who were standing with him in the video continued to talk.
"I couldn't finish this video because I was involuntarily retching from the smell," the MP wrote on Twitter. "It was one of the most disgusting experiences of my life. I felt so sick that I panicked and jumped in the river to escape it - as bad as it is!"
The government has blamed the mass fish death on drought. However, AAP reports irrigation, bad management and pollution has been touted by critics as the cause.
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