Diversity and conservation status of fishes in the lower reach of Manu River of Tripura

Abstract

A study was carried out from lower reach of Manu river of Tripura, North-East India during May, 2020 to June 2023 to investigate the diversity of fishes and their conservation status. During the study period a total of 50 fish species belonging to 10 orders, 21 families and 35 genera were identified. The Cypriniformes was the most dominate order with 20 species (40%) followed by Siluriformes 14 species (28%) and Perciformes 5 species (10%).According to the IUCN, 5 species of the total fish recorded during the present study are placed near threatened (NT) category in the IUCN (2023) check list. The present study showed that the lower reach of Manu river possesses rich fish diversity but some malpractices were noticed during study period which is likely to be forced on decreasing trend in both diversity and abundance of fish in the study area in near future. Therefore, it is to be expected that the outcomes of the present study will certainly help chalking out proper strategies for conserving of fish biodiversity as well as for sustainable utilization of this important resource for human benefit in this region.