FISH BIODIVERSITYAND FISHERIESBETWEEN CHIANG SAEN AND LUANG PRABANG

Eric BARAN, Tuantong JUTAGATE, Natasha SERRAO

2016 Greater Mekong Forum, Bangkok, 9-11 November 2016

Target area: Mekong River mainstream between the Golden Triangle and

Nam Chi

Nam Mun

Due to fish migrations, impacts in the mainstream might extend to fish within adjacent sub-basins

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Nam Tha

Nam Mae Kham

Nam Mae Kok

Nam Mae Ing

Nam Ngeun

Nam KhanNam SuongNam Ou

Main sources of information (i):

Mainstream:

MRC Mekong Fish Database 2003

Meynell P.-J. 2003 Scoping study for biodiversity assessmentof the Mekong River in northern Laos and Thailand, Dubeau, P. (ed.) 2004 Follow-up survey for biodiversity assessment of the Mekong River in Northern Lao PDR,IUCN Water and Nature Initiative and Mekong Wetlands Biodiversity Conservation and Sustainable Use Programme, Bangkok, Thailand. 60 pp.

FISH BIODIVERSITY

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Main sources of information (ii):

Sub-basins:

MRC Mekong Fish Database 2003

Bin Kang, Daming He, Perrett L., Hongyuan Wang, Wenxian Hu; Weide Deng, Yunfei Wu 2009 Fish and fisheries in the Upper Mekong: current assessment of the fish community, threats and conservation. Rev Fish Biol Fisheries 19:465–480.

Warren T.J., Thavone Phommavong 2010. Nam Ou cascade environment impact assessment: fisheries and aquatic resources (F&AR) component. Draft report (V2) for Earth System Lao (ESL) for submission to Sinohydro Corporation Ltd. 103 pp.

Kottelat M. 2009. Fishes of the upper Nam Ou drainage in Laos. WWF, Community Fisheries: supporting food security and aquatic biodiversity (ComFish Project), Vientiane, Lao PDR. 27 pp. 

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Taxonomic update: www.fishbase.org / Tools / Match names

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Fish species richness

Cyprinidae; 88

Cobitidae; 16Pangasiidae, 14Bagridae, 11

Siluridae, 11

Osphrone-midae; 7

Channidae; 5

Families (31) with <5 species; 56

208 fish species are found within the study area

These 208 species are comprised of 38 families, of which minnows/carps, loaches and catfishes have the highest diversity

Loaches

Catfishes

Minnows and Carps

Indigenous Endemic Introduced020406080

100120140160180200

Num

ber

of S

peci

es9

The 208 species are comprised of 157 indigenous, 7 endemic, and 7 introduced species. Mekong endemics make up 3.4% of the total species but none of the endemic species is specific to the study side.

194

7 7

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Cyprinidae (minnows, carps, barbs)

Largest family in the Mekong with 25% of the fish species.

Account for most of the fisheries yield in the Mekong Basin especially during their seasonal migrations and are very important for aquaculture.

Many are popular and economically valuable.

Most species are generalists; feed on a mixture of invertebrates, organic debris and plants.

42%

11

Cobitidae (loaches)

Small fish; at least 27 species from the Mekong.

Have spines under the eyes that allow them to wedge themselves in rock crevices. Loaches are also capable of burying themselves very quickly in sand or gravel.

Some loaches are highly migratory and seasonally important in local fisheries.

8%

12

7%

Pangasiidae (pangas catfishes)

Medium to large fish; 250 cm for the Mekong giant catfish.

Many pangas undertake long migrations in the Mekong mainstream

They are a popular foodfish, and are very important in both the capture fisheries and aquaculture in the Lower and Middle Mekong Basin.

Their feeding habits are very variable depending on species, includes; fruits, invertebrates, fish, algae

13

5%

Bagridae (bagrid catfishes)

Small to medium sized widely distributed fishes

Some of the larger species are migratory

Very important food fishes throughout the Mekong Basin

Feed mainly on benthic invertebrates.

14

5%

Siluridae (sheat catfishes)

Medium to large sized fishes; found throughout the Mekong

Highly important in the Mekong fisheries and at least one species (Wallago attu) is known to be an excellent gamefish.

Some sheatfishes are pelagic, and they feed on invertebrates and fishes.

Cyprin

idae

Nemach

eilida

e

Gobiid

ae

Cobitid

ae

Siluri

dae

Balito

ridae

Sisori

dae

Bagri

dae

Pang

asiida

e

0.05.0

10.015.020.025.030.035.040.045.0

% of sp in Mekong% of sp in study zone

Within the Mekong, the section studied is specific by its diversity in Cyprinids, loaches and catfishes

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There are very few specific studies of fisheries between the Golden Triangle and Luang Prabang

FISHERIES

Capture fisheries in the mainstream from China to Chiang Saen

The upper Mekong Basin in China produces around 25,000 tonnes a year (Xie and Li 2003). This low production is explained by the fact that the river flows in deep gorges, with a subsequent low productivity (no floodplains) and that population density along banks is very low. CCapture fisheries in this zone employed about 15,000 persons in 2002

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Capture fisheries in the mainstream between Chiang Saen and Vientiane

In 2010 fishing was not officially considered as a significant activity. People on the Mekong river banks do fish for household consumption, but this goes unrecorded in district or provincial level statistics and not reflected in social development plans.

MRC study of fish consumption and catch (Sjorslev et al. 2000) → total fish catch of 10,000 to 14,000 tonnes per in Luangprabang Province

MRC SEA 2010: Population x estimated annual consumption → 29,000 tonnes consumed (70%) + 20% sold + 10% in kind. → 41,000 tonnes/year

Barlow et al. (2008) → 60,000 tonnes/year Conclusion: annual yield between 40,000 and 60,000 tonnes/year

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In general, fishery activities from Xieng Kok to Huay Xai is less prevalent than from Huay Xai to Luang Prabang, due to the scarcity of villages in this sectionAlso, strong water currents occurring in the upper part of Mekong deter fishing.

In this sub-section, only a few people fish in the Mekong River, while the majority fish in smaller tributaries, backswamps and ponds where fish are easier to catch.

The main reason why the Mekong is not widely fished is that villagers cannot afford the upfront investment to acquire the necessary gear for fishing in the main river.

Example Key Amphibians (S. Phimmachak & B. Stuart)

Quasipaa sp.

Ophryophryne cf. microstoma

Leptolalax minimus

Leptobrachium smithi

Amolops cremnobatus

Rhacophorus kio

Example Key Reptiles (S. Phimmachak & B. Stuart)

Tropidophorus laotus Cyrtodactylus interdigitalis

Physignathus cocincinus

Python reticulatus

Lycodon laoensis Opisthotropis durandi

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Thanks for your attention