Fish Biodiversity, Endemism, Threats and Conservation in the Qiantang River, China
Fish Biodiversity, Endemism, Threats and Conservation in the Qiantang River, China
Wen Xiong1*, Shengao Chen2, Dong Xie3, Qiang Wang4, Yanxia Li5, Lei Pan6, Xiaolei Ren7*, Wei Tang8*, Kang Chen9 and Ross N. Cuthbert10
ABSTRACT
Freshwater fish diversity is imperiled by multiple stressors with global change, including invasive species and habitat loss. There is an urgent need to establish synthesized baseline information pertaining to current ecological communities to quantify future change and identify habitats to protect. The Qiantang River is the largest river in the Zhejiang Province, located in the southeast of China, with extensive fishery and aquaculture sectors. However, synthetic information on freshwater fish biodiversity and invasions in this region is lacking, impeding conservation efforts. We compile published information and empirical surveys to comprehensively discern the fish community of the Qiantang River. There are 184 (167 native and 17 non-native) freshwater fish species or subspecies, belonging to 15 orders, 38 families and 105 genera in the Qiantang River, including species listed as among the ‘100 world’s worst invasive species. Therein, 24 species are endemic to China and 14 species are classed as endangered by the IUCN. We identify and discuss habitat loss, pollution, sand mining, over-fishing and non-native species as the major threats to freshwater fish biodiversity in this system. Thus, we propose that protected areas and bans on fish introductions, should be adopted and better enforced in this and other freshwater systems.
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