engleski

Endangered Fish Species in Balkan Rivers: their distributions and threats from hydropower development

We reviewed the potential impact of large-scale hydropower expansion on the conservation status and extinction threat of 113 freshwater fish species on the Balkan Peninsula. Each of these species is listed in one of three IUCN threat categories and/or listed in one or more annexes of the European Habitats Directive or Bern Convention. For 81 of these species, GIS-based distribution maps have been overlaid with distributions of existing hydropower facilities (ca. 1, 000), those in construction (ca. 180), or those planned (ca. 2, 800) to explicitly demonstrate the spatial dimension of potential habitat loss. Based on these plans, we predict that up to 49 freshwater fish species are faced with either the threat of extinction or loss of between 50 and 100% of their Balkan distribution. Of these, eleven endemic species are threatened with extinction, seven will become critically endangered, and the number of endangered species will double to twenty-four. For 68 of 69 endemic species, habitat losses are estimated between 30 and 100%, resulting in increased levels of endangerment for essentially the entire endemic fauna. Additionally, the four migratory sturgeon species would essentially lose their potential for rehabilitation in the lower Danube if additional dams were constructed there.

hydropower ; extinction threat ; freshwater fishes

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