Main Article Content

Abstract

Knowing ichthyofaunal diversity and distribution models are critical challenges for researchers and fisheries managers who deal with the decline and extinction of freshwater ichthyofauna. The aim of this review is to evaluate the important literature reporting on ichthyofaunal diversity, their distribution and conservation status and also to identify the climatic and anthropogenic threats that are responsible for the decline of ichthyofauna in the three rivers of the Malakand division Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. Peer reviewed articles, published from 2000 to 2023, that described freshwater ichthyofaunal diversity, their distribution and conservation status were carefully selected. In total, 66 freshwater fish which belong to 8 families have been reported at the survey sites. Out of these the dominant family among the three rivers of the Malakand division is Cyprinidae (56%) followed by Nemacheilidae (15%). The conservation status of the studied ichthyofaunal diversity of the Malakand division indicated that 66 % of the species are of least concern, 10% are endangered, 6% are vulnerable, 7% are nearly threatened, 3% are critically endangered while 8% are not evaluated. Published records show that freshwater ichthyofaunal diversity is continuously declining due to anthropogenic factors and climatic changes such as global warming, heat waves, flooding, illegal and overfishing, habitat destruction and water pollution. In conclusion, certain measures such as habitat restoration, banned on illegal fishing and control of water pollution are required to preserve ichthyofaunal diversity in the studied area. Furthermore, a complete survey of the current ichthyofaunal diversity, conservation status and water quality analysis are highly recommended at the studied sites.

Keywords

Fish Freshwater Distribution Conservation Climate changes

Article Details

How to Cite
KHAN, I., Ul ISLAM, F., ALI, H., ATTAULLAH, M., & KHAN, M. A. (2024). Ichthyofaunal diversity of the Malakand division and the climatic and anthropogenic factors responsible for their decline. Iranian Journal of Ichthyology, 11(2), 98–114. https://doi.org/10.22034/iji.v11i2.1015

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