The Western Ghats or 'Sahyadris' is home to some very unique flora, fauna and fungi. Sahyadri's freshwater ecosystem and biodiversity are highly diverse supporting livelihoods, providing invaluable ecosystem services and The Sahyãdri | | sustaining more than 400 million people in the world's Research Education Conservation highest concentration of humans in a biodiversity hotspot.

Fish species have evolved differently for life adapted to Carinotetraodon travancoricus different aquatic habitats ranging from marine to brackish to freshwater ecosystems and form a critical link in the Freshwater food chain of these ecosystems. Freshwater live in a Lepidopygopsis typus variety of habitats such as rivers, streams, ponds, lakes, wetlands, swamps and marshes. They form a big share of The Sahyãdri Tor khudree Monopterus indicus the food consumed by man and also offer aesthetic pleasure as aquarium pets. Fish

Globally, about 15,000 freshwater fish species are recorded including brackish water species. In there are about 760 freshwater fish species of which 73 are in cold freshwaters, 544 are in warm freshwaters and 143 in brackish waters. The Western Ghats harbours 332 fish Mesonoemacheilus petrubanarescui Nemacheilus menoni species of which 202 are endemic (60%). FRESHWATER FISH Sahyadria denisonii Some major threats for freshwater are: pollution of Pethia pookodensis Botia striata Garra surendranathanii freshwater habitats, construction of dams and other structures that alter the natural flow of the water body, there by restricting migration of fishes for the purpose of breeding, over-exploitation for food, and increasingly from alien invasive fish and crustacean species. More than 1/3rd (37%) of freshwater fishes are threatened with extinction, and more than 50% of endemic species are threatened with extinction in the Western Ghats.

Glyptothorax davissinghi Parapsilorhynchus elongatus Series Editors Gagata itchkeea Sanjay Molur and B.A. Daniel Reviewers Channa diplogramma Rajeev Raghavan and Neelesh Dahanukar

Photo Credits Rajeev Raghavan, Neelesh Dahanukar, Krishna Kumar and Ralf Britz

Layout R. Pravin Kumar and Latha Ravikumar Friends of TARGET Eechathalakenda ophicephala Balitora mysorensis Produced by WILD in collaboration with ZOO Parapsilorhynchus discophorus through a grant from Travancoria jonesi Hemibagrus punctatus Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) Email: [email protected] ZOO/WILD Fold-out #3 - Sep2013 Threatened Endemic Parapsilorhynchus prateri CR (PE) Pethia pookodensis CR Freshwater Fishes of the Western Ghats Pethia setnai VU Pethia sharmai EN Beloniformes: Hemiramphidae arenatus VU Hyporhamphus xanthopterus VU Puntius cauveriensis EN Travancoria elongata : Balitoridae Puntius crescentus EN Balitora mysorensis VU Puntius deccanensis CR (PE) Homaloptera montana EN Puntius fraseri EN Homaloptera santhamparaiensis EN Puntius mudumalaiensis VU Indoreonectes keralensis VU Sahyadria chalakkudiensis EN Mesonoemacheilus herrei CR Sahyadria denisonii EN Garra periyarensis Mesonoemacheilus menoni VU Salmostoma belachi VU Mesonoemacheilus pambarensis VU Salmostoma horai VU Labeo potail Mesonoemacheilus periyarensis VU Schismatorhynchos nukta EN Mesonoemacheilus petrubanarescui EN Thynnichthys sandkhol EN Mesonoemacheilus pulchellus EN Tor khudree EN Nemachilichthys shimogensis EN Tor kulkarnii EN Schistura kodaguensis VU Tor malabaricus EN Schistura nagodiensis EN Cypriniformes: Psilorhynchidae Schistura sharavathiensis VU Psilorhynchus tenura CR Schistura striata EN Perciformes: Channidae Travancoria elongata EN Channa diplogramma VU Travancoria jonesi EN Perciformes: Cichlidae Cypriniformes: Cobitidae Etroplus canarensis EN Schismatorhynchos nukta Barilius canarensis EN Perciformes: Osphronemidae Botia striata EN Pseudosphromenus dayi VU Cechathalekenda ophicephalus EN Siluriformes: Bagridae Cirrhinus cirrhosus VU Batasio sharavatiensis EN Hypselobarbus micropogon Crossocheilus periyarensis EN Batasio travancoria VU Species richness of Fish in the Dawkinsia arulius EN Hemibagrus punctatus CR (PE) Western Ghats assessment region Crossocheilus periyarensis Dawkinsia assimilis VU Horabagrus brachysoma VU Dawkinsia exclamatio EN Horabagrus nigricollaris EN Dawkinsia rohani VU Siluriformes: Schilbeidae Dawkinsia tambraparniei EN Pseudeutropius mitchelli EN Devario fraseri VU Silonia childreni EN Devario neilgherriensis EN Siluriformes: Siluridae Garra hughi EN Pterocryptis wynaadensis EN Garra kalakadensis EN Siluriformes: Sisoridae Horabagrus brachysoma Number of fish species of Western Ghats under each Garra menoni VU Gagata itchkeea VU Glyptothorax anamalaiensis EN IUCN Red List category (2013). Devario neilgherriensis Garra periyarensis VU Garra surendranathanii EN Glyptothorax davissinghi EN Global Red List Category Number of fish species Horalabiosa arunachalami CR Glyptothorax housei EN Horalabiosa joshuai EN Glyptothorax kudremukhensis CR Endemic Non-endemic Total Horalabiosa palaniensis VU Glyptothorax madraspatanus EN Extinct (EX) 0 0 0 Hypselobarbus curmuca EN Glyptothorax poonaensis EN Tor malabaricus Hypselobarbus dubius EN Glyptothorax trewavasae VU Extinct in the Wild (EW) 0 0 0 Hypselobarbus micropogon EN Synbranchiformes: Synbranchidae Critically Endangered (CR) 12 0 12 Hypselobarbus mussullah EN Monopterus fossorius EN Hypselobarbus periyarensis EN Monopterus indicus VU Endangered (EN) 53 1 54 Hypselobarbus pulchellus CR Tetraodontiformes: Tetraodontidae Vulnerable (VU) 31 0 31 Hypselobarbus thomassi CR Carinotetraodon travancoricus VU Labeo potail EN Near Threatened (NT) 3 3 6 Pethia setnai Laubuca fasciata VU Red List Categories: Least concern (LC) 66 95 161 Lepidopygopsis typus EN EX-Extinct; EW-Extinct in the Wild; CR-Critically Endangered; Neolissochilus bovanicus CR EN-Endangered; VU-Vulnerable; NT-Near Threatened; Data Deficient (DD) 24 2 26 Neolissochilus wynaadensis CR LC-Least Concern; DD-Data Deficient; PE-Possibly Extinct. Total species 189 101 290 Osteochilichthys bhimensis EN Hypselobarbus periyarensis Glyptothorax anamalaiensis Osteochilichthys longidorsalis EN IUCN Red List Categories at a global level The highlighted rows (CR, EN and VU) are the 'threatened' Parapsilorhynchus discophorus VU categories. Parapsilorhynchus elongatus EN