Title : Indus river downstream study reveals 32 migratory species
Abstract:
The study covers fish migration and its significance in the ecosystem, which refers to landscape-scale movements of energy, resources, and creatures that play an essential role in driving local food webs and ecosystem dynamics. There are several gaps in our understanding of migratory fish life cycles and their interactions with hydrological systems. Migratory fish are an important part of the Ichthyofauna of streams and rivers. Due to the un-connectivity or low scarcity of water level contain crucial life-stage habitat for migratory species, such as spawning and nursery sites, migratory corridors, and feeding zones. Fish movement and migration studies are commonly conducted to better understand the temporal and geographical distribution of fish in freshwater and ocean. Thus, the current study's goal was to assess the distribution of imported fishes in freshwaters along the Indus River Downstream. Fish samples were taken from eight locations between January and December 2015 and 2021. A total of 124 species were documented, with 32 of them being of oceanic origin and potentially anadromous. The most extensively spread of these 32 species were Tenualosa ilisha, Lates calcarifer, and Liza subviridis. Furthermore, these species may be validated and designated as anadromous fish following the Indus River's normal downstream flow. The primary goal of this study is to emphasize the diversity of migratory fishes in order to create a more thorough understanding of fish as critical components of riverine ecosystems.
Keywords: Anthropogenic impacts, Anadromy, Fish migration, Indus River.
