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    Fish Biodiversity Along The Mekong River

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    MG
    The document summarizes information about fish biodiversity along the Mekong River from Tibet to the coast of Vietnam. It describes the key features of the Mekong River including its hydrology and how it supports high fish species diversity. It then discusses the factors that drive fish production such as seasonal flooding of wetlands, fish migrations patterns, and fishing activities. It also outlines threats to Mekong fish biodiversity particularly from the construction of dams which can obstruct migrations and alter flooding patterns.

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    Fish Biodiversity Along The Mekong River

    Uploaded by

    MG
    100 views44 pages
    The document summarizes information about fish biodiversity along the Mekong River from Tibet to the coast of Vietnam. It describes the key features of the Mekong River including its hydrology and how it supports high fish species diversity. It then discusses the factors that drive fish production such as seasonal flooding of wetlands, fish migrations patterns, and fishing activities. It also outlines threats to Mekong fish biodiversity particularly from the construction of dams which can obstruct migrations and alter flooding patterns.

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    Fish Biodiversity Along the Mekong River

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    Fish Biodiversity Along the Mekong River

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    The document summarizes information about fish biodiversity along the Mekong River from Tibet to the coast of Vietnam. It describes the key features of the Mekong River including its hydrology and how it supports high fish species diversity. It then discusses the factors that drive fish production such as seasonal flooding of wetlands, fish migrations patterns, and fishing activities. It also outlines threats to Mekong fish biodiversity particularly from the construction of dams which can obstruct migrations and alter flooding patterns.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    100 views44 pages

    Fish Biodiversity Along The Mekong River

    Uploaded by

    MG
    The document summarizes information about fish biodiversity along the Mekong River from Tibet to the coast of Vietnam. It describes the key features of the Mekong River including its hydrology and how it supports high fish species diversity. It then discusses the factors that drive fish production such as seasonal flooding of wetlands, fish migrations patterns, and fishing activities. It also outlines threats to Mekong fish biodiversity particularly from the construction of dams which can obstruct migrations and alter flooding patterns.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    of 44

    people y science y environment y partners

    Fish biodiversity
    along the Mekong River
    from the Himalaya to the coast

    Eric BARAN
    MITH Somountha
    OUTLINE

    ƒ Main features of the Mekong River

    ƒ Tour of the Mekong, from Tibet down to the Delta

    ƒ Mekong fisheries

    ƒ Factors driving fish production

    ƒ Threats to Mekong fish biodiversity

    ƒ Tools for fish biodiversity researchers


    MAIN FEATURES OF THE MEKONG RIVER

    Hydrology, fish biodiversity, population


    MEKONG RIVER BASIN

    China

    Burma Vietnam
    Lao
    PDR

    Thailand

    Cambodia
    Mekong hydrology

    10th river of the world in length (4350 km = 2700 mi)


    14th river of the world in discharge,
    …but first in hydrological variability
    1250 - 67,000 m3.s-1

    Large-scale seasonal flooding → huge area of wetlands


    Laos: along 1700 km of river
    Cambodia: 20% of the country
    Vietnam: surface of Belgium

    Total: the surface of Ireland

    Flood duration
    Painting from Osmose NGO, Prek Toal, Cambodia
    Mekong fish biodiversity

    Very high species richness:


    around 1000 fish species
    (between 768 and 1200)

    Main characteristic: migrations


    - 87% of known species are migratory
    - ~ 50% of the catch made of
    long distance migrants

    A majority of fish species depends


    on flooded areas for food and
    reproduction
    Pangasianodon gigas.

    Himantura oxyrhynchus

    Catlocarpio siamensis

    Minute carp max. 2.5 cm)

    Oreichthys parvus
    Mekong fish migrations

    Fishing
    effort

    Large & medium-sized Cyprinids Large Cyprinids


    esp. Probarbus, Hypsibarbus, esp. Cirrhinus
    Cosmocheilus Other species

    10 Small Cyprinids Small & medium-


    9 esp. Henichorhynchus sized Cyprinids
    Black fish Small Pangasiids
    8
    Water level in Pakse (m)
    average over 8 years

    7
    6 Medium-sized Cyprinids
    5 W multiple species Migration
    a t Large Pangasiids
    4 e r Upstream
    3 l e Downstream
    2 v e l
    1 Laterally
    0
    OCT NOV DEC JAN FEB MAR APR MAY JUN JUL AUG SEP

    Example from Khone Falls (Southern Laos)


    Species richness, wetlands and fish migrations
    characterize aquatic ecology in the Lower Mekong Basin
    Mekong population

    60 million people in the watershed


    (76 million by 2020)

    Countries characterized by
    a poor and rural population
    UNDP Human Development Index 2004
    Thailand: 76/177 Viet Nam: 112
    Lao PDR: 135 Cambodia: 130

    High economic dependence on fisheries in rural households


    (can exceed 80% in rural households)

    Fish consumption in the Mekong Basin: 24 – 34 kg/person/year


    = 49 – 82% of animal protein consumed
    Fish is central to the food security and livelihood
    of rural communities in the Mekong basin
    MEKONG FISHERIES
    The Mekong River produces around
    2.6 million tonnes of fish per year
    This represents
    7 times the inland fisheries production in Northern America
    13 times the marine fisheries sector in Australia
    4 times the whole fisheries sector in France

    Value of Mekong fish catches: > USD 2000 million / year

    Cambodia: most productive inland fishery in the world


    (1ha = up to 230 kg/y)

    In the Tonle Sap River, during the migration peak, 34 tonnes of


    fish (i.e. about 3 million individual fishes) are caught every hour
    (Columbia River: 2 million salmons per year)
    Annual Fish Annual Fish
    Country Catch Consumption
    (FW, tonnes) (kg/person)
    China ~ 25,000 -
    (Yunnan) ≈1%
    Lao PDR ~ 180,000 t 24
    ≈7%
    Cambodia ~ 680,000 t 32
    ≈25%
    Thailand ~ 930,000 25
    ≈35%
    Vietnam ~ 840,000 34
    ≈32%

    Japan freshwater fish catch: ~ 60,000 tonnes/year


    Biodiversity = food security
    FACTORS DRIVING FISH PRODUCTION
    HYDROLOGY FLOODPLAIN MIGRATIONS
    ENVIRONMENT
    Water level
    Flood duration Flooded vegetation Triggers
    Flood timing Refuges Obstacles

    FISHING

    Fishers groups
    FISH Fishing intensity
    PRODUCTION

    A sustained fish production is possible only


    through a coordinated effort encompassing these 4 components
    Hydrology: surface area flooded

    AREA
    FLOODED

    16

    14
    WATER LEVEL

    12

    10

    0
    Hydrology: duration of the flood
    Hydrology: timing of the flood
    Migrations: 3 main zones

    Lower Mekong system Middle Mekong system Upper Mekong system


    750-950,000 tonnes 500-600,000 tonnes 36,000 tonnes
    of migratory fishes of migratory fishes of migratory fishes
    Migrations: hydrological triggers
    Environment: floodplain vegetation

    Barren land Grassland

    Flooded forest
    Environment: dry season refuges
    Environment: beyond the river banks
    Surface salinity, April Surface salinity, July

    Mekong plume
    A 3D Circulation Model of the South China Sea
    Huijie Xue, Fei Chai, Neal Pettigrew, Danya Xu, Maochong Shi
    MAIN THREATS TO
    MEKONG FISH BIODIVERSITY
    Dams
    Dams are the main threat to
    fish biodiversity and
    fisheries production

    53 dams ≥ 1 MW exist or are in


    construction;
    159 more are considered for
    development
    in the Mekong Basin

    Dam development will:


    - obstruct migration routes
    - modify flood height
    flood duration
    flood timing
    Upstream developments
    will reduce the water level and the surface area flooded

    6 Baseline scenario
    Water level (m)

    Intensive basin development


    5
    Extreme basin development
    4

    0
    October

    January
    November

    December

    April
    July

    August

    March
    June

    February
    May

    September
    Upstream dams
    will result in floods arriving later

    Delay

    Upstream dams
    will, in average, shorten
    the duration of the flood
    Upstream developments
    Sediment
    will sharply reduce loss
    the amount of sediments
    arriving to the lake

    Upstream developments
    will result in higher water levels in
    the dry season
    Threat: fishing down food web
    TOOLS FOR FISH BIODIVERSITY RESEARCHERS
    FISHBASE

    www.fishbase.org

    Information about 768 fish species


    of the Mekong Basin

    All information published on 28,500 fish species

    Taxonomy, photos, common names, records, identification keys, etc

    Internet, DVD and CD-ROM

    Multi-lingual access in ASEAN languages


    www.fishbase.org
    MRC MEKONG FISH DATABASE

    Information about 833 fish species of


    the Mekong Basin.

    Information not as recent and reliable as in FishBase

    More information on ecology and migrations

    CD-ROM only (no Internet version)


    MRC FISH MIGRATIONS
    IN THE MEKONG RIVER BASIN

    The CD covers 39 species in great detail

    - distribution range based mainly on LEK


    - facts about the species,
    - population structure hypotheses
    - critical habitats
    - life cycle
    - importance in fisheries.

    The main focus is on life cycles of fishes and the critical habitats that each
    species depend on in order to complete its life cycle
    INFORMATION

    www.worldfishcenter.org/v2/pubs search "Mekong"


    PERSPECTIVES AND NEEDS IN RESEARCH

    Taxonomy

    Climate change vs. dams

    Artificial habitats

    Wetland productivity

    Relationships vegetation – fish production

    Relationship river – coastal productivity

    Monitoring, baseline assessments


    Thank you !

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