The current status of inland fisheries in Basrah province, Iraq

Abstract

The current status of species composition, total catch, fishing effort and their landing trends in six fish landing locations in the inland waters of Basrah province, Iraq from 2017 to 2019 were assessed. A total of 15 species in 5 families were recognized in the inland fisheries. The maximum total catch was 2061.5 t in 2019, whereas 1740.7 t in 2017 and 1804.2 t in 2018. The total catches show a clear increasing trend from 2017 to 2019. Cyprinus carpio dominated the overall catch (29.2%), followed by Planiliza abu (16.2%) and tilapias (15.4%). There are positive trends in the catches of all species, except P. abu and Luciobarbus xanthopterus. The highest trends were for Leuciscus vorax and Carasobarbus luteus. The overall values of biomass diversity of each species ranged from 2.10 in 2017 to 2.01 in 2018, whereas 2.11 in 2019. About 75% of the fishing boats (2140 boats) was without engine propelled by paddles in the lengths of 3.5 to 5.0 m. The study suggests some management measures must be put into place include the enforce fish regulations in the Basrah inland fisheries, in particular, preventing illegal fishing methods, and increasing fish production by releasing fingerlings of cyprinid species to preserve them and protect them from extinction and overfishing.