13 December 2019: A new study by the Institute for Applied Ecology (IAE) at the University of Canberra has found that alarmingly, 37% of Australian freshwater fish are threatened with extinction.
The study—led by Associate Professor Mark Lintermans and involving more than 50 national fish experts from across the country—assessed almost 250 Australian freshwater fish species and found that 88 were threatened with extinction, with another 16 assessed as near-threatened.
The study was part of an assessment by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and published in the Red List, which is the international benchmark and most authoritative list of threatened species used around the world.
“This is the first strategic national assessment ever done for Australian freshwater fish and is a wake-up call,” said Associate Professor Lintermans.
“Of note is the fact that 27 of the 88 threatened fishes are currently undescribed or described since 2010, highlighting that we have likely lost several species before they were even described.”
The study shows the major threats to Australian freshwater fish around the country is climate change (58%), invasive species (93%) and habitat loss or disturbance (73%).
“In a largely arid country in the grip of another drought, competition for water is fierce and fish and other aquatic fauna are often not considered,” said Associate Professor Lintermans.
“The sobering assessment of more than a third of our fish being threatened with extinction is the wake-up call we need to act to protect rivers and water resources.”
However, it’s not all bad news with two freshwater fish species – Trout Cod (Maccullochella macquariensis) and Pedder Galaxias (Galaxias peddernsis) – improving from Endangered to Vulnerable and Critically Endangered to Endangered respectively.
Associate Professor Lintermans says, unfortunately, fish do not figure as a priority on the Commonwealth Governments conservation agenda and is calling for future strategies to identify priority fish for conservation action.
“There are no freshwater fish (only mammals, birds and plants) identified as priorities in the 2015 National Threatened Species Strategy which expires in 2020,” said Associate Professor Lintermans.
“If we do not identify priority fish for conservation action, we are destined to repeat the appalling extinction record for Australian Mammals.”