Finfish Diversity of River Narmada and Its Tributaries

The diversity of finfish in river Narmada and its tributaries in central and western India has been reviewed. We could compile a total of 196 species from both freshwater and brackish water habitats, under 14 orders, 51 families, and 126 genera. The order Cypriniformes represented the highest diversity with 78 species (i.e., 39.8%) followed by Perciformes (47 species), Siluriformes (32 species), Clupeiformes (15 species), etc. As per the IUCN Red List category, the maximum number of species are under Least Concern (129), followed by Not Evaluated (36), Near Threatened (14), Data Deficient (11), Vulnerable (4), and Endangered (2). The species Tor khudree and Tor putitora were found Endangered in the system. Out of 196 finfish species, 77 are food fishes, 33 having both ornamental and food fish value, 21 are truly ornamental value, and 31 as sports fishes. Habitat wise distribution of the fishes indicates that 79 species are truly freshwater and 3 species are truly marine, while 58 species range between freshwater and brackish water habitats, 21 between brackish water and marine habitats and 35 species range from freshwater to marine habitats. This review presents up-to-date information on finfish biodiversity of river Narmada. It will help in making appropriate conservation and management planning of fisheries in this river.