Selection of Representative Fish in the Yangtze River Upstream Nature Reserve from the Perspective of Ecosystem Hydrology Regulation

Abstract

The selection of representative fishes is the first problem to be solved in the ecological scheduling conducted by the downstream cascade reservoir of Jinsha River for the protection of fish species in the Yangtze River Upstream National Nature Reserve for Rare and Endemic Fishes (hereinafter referred to as “the Yangtze River Upstream Nature Reserve”). This paper has presented the basic steps to determine the representative fishes and established the evaluation index system of fish representativeness in Yangtze River Upstream Nature Reserve that serves the ecosystem hydrology regulation. The result showed that Acipenser dabryanus and Myxocyprinus asiaticus could be selected as representative fishes producing demersal eggs and viscid eggs; Coreius guichenoti and Rhinogobio ventralis as representative fishes of class I producing pelagic eggs; Coreius heterokon and “four famous domestic fishes” as representative fishes of class II producing pelagic eggs.