Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran
We assessed the distribution of alien fishes in the Karun River Basin, Iran. Fish were collected from 39 sites during the November–December 2018 low-flow period. In total, 39 fish species from nine orders and 14 families were documented. Among these, 10 species were alien to the basin (986 individua...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Fishes |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2410-3888/8/11/538 |
| _version_ | 1797459361781514240 |
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| author | Mojgan Zare Shahraki Yazdan Keivany Eisa Ebrahimi Dorche Karen Blocksom Andreas Bruder Joseph Flotemersch Doru Bănăduc |
| author_facet | Mojgan Zare Shahraki Yazdan Keivany Eisa Ebrahimi Dorche Karen Blocksom Andreas Bruder Joseph Flotemersch Doru Bănăduc |
| author_sort | Mojgan Zare Shahraki |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We assessed the distribution of alien fishes in the Karun River Basin, Iran. Fish were collected from 39 sites during the November–December 2018 low-flow period. In total, 39 fish species from nine orders and 14 families were documented. Among these, 10 species were alien to the basin (986 individuals; 15.7%). Four species were the most abundant alien species and primarily in impounded, downstream reaches. Redundancy analysis (RDA) was conducted to identify the extent of changes in alien fish assemblages with environmental parameters. RDA1 and RDA2 accounted for 36.24% and 25.33% of the variation of alien species, respectively. Altitude, depth, electrical conductivity, water temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and river width were the most significant parameters affecting alien species distributions. We present a dual-pathway cause-and-effect hypothesis proposing that alien fish species presence causes declines in the ecological status of native fish communities. We then explore how human-induced aquatic ecosystem degradation creates opportunities for alien species to invade new ecosystems, further impacting native fish communities. Our study contributes insight into the cause and effect of the presence of alien fish species in the Karun River Basin and emphasizes the urgency of conservation measures to protect this critically endangered watershed. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T16:51:22Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-ef85f9909f904b409658251a6939c551 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2410-3888 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T16:51:22Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Fishes |
| spelling | doaj.art-ef85f9909f904b409658251a6939c5512023-11-24T14:41:39ZengMDPI AGFishes2410-38882023-10-0181153810.3390/fishes8110538Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, IranMojgan Zare Shahraki0Yazdan Keivany1Eisa Ebrahimi Dorche2Karen Blocksom3Andreas Bruder4Joseph Flotemersch5Doru Bănăduc6Department of Natural Resources, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, IranDepartment of Natural Resources, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, IranDepartment of Natural Resources, Isfahan University of Technology, Isfahan 84156-83111, IranU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Corvallis, OR 97333, USAInstitute of Microbiology, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland, via Flora Ruchat Roncati 15, 6850 Mendrisio, SwitzerlandU.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USAApplied Ecology Research Center, Lucian Blaga University of Sibiu, 550024 Sibiu, RomaniaWe assessed the distribution of alien fishes in the Karun River Basin, Iran. Fish were collected from 39 sites during the November–December 2018 low-flow period. In total, 39 fish species from nine orders and 14 families were documented. Among these, 10 species were alien to the basin (986 individuals; 15.7%). Four species were the most abundant alien species and primarily in impounded, downstream reaches. Redundancy analysis (RDA) was conducted to identify the extent of changes in alien fish assemblages with environmental parameters. RDA1 and RDA2 accounted for 36.24% and 25.33% of the variation of alien species, respectively. Altitude, depth, electrical conductivity, water temperature, turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and river width were the most significant parameters affecting alien species distributions. We present a dual-pathway cause-and-effect hypothesis proposing that alien fish species presence causes declines in the ecological status of native fish communities. We then explore how human-induced aquatic ecosystem degradation creates opportunities for alien species to invade new ecosystems, further impacting native fish communities. Our study contributes insight into the cause and effect of the presence of alien fish species in the Karun River Basin and emphasizes the urgency of conservation measures to protect this critically endangered watershed.https://www.mdpi.com/2410-3888/8/11/538Karun Basinfishhuman impactalien speciesredundancy analysishabitat quality |
| spellingShingle | Mojgan Zare Shahraki Yazdan Keivany Eisa Ebrahimi Dorche Karen Blocksom Andreas Bruder Joseph Flotemersch Doru Bănăduc Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran Fishes Karun Basin fish human impact alien species redundancy analysis habitat quality |
| title | Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran |
| title_full | Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran |
| title_fullStr | Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran |
| title_full_unstemmed | Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran |
| title_short | Distribution and Expansion of Alien Fish Species in the Karun River Basin, Iran |
| title_sort | distribution and expansion of alien fish species in the karun river basin iran |
| topic | Karun Basin fish human impact alien species redundancy analysis habitat quality |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2410-3888/8/11/538 |
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