Fish Biodiversity at Haor Wetland of Bangladesh: A Comprehensive Review

Sabikun Nahar, Md. Hashibur Rahman*, Md. Saiful Islam, Mohammad Ashraful Alam, Saymuna Tarin Lupa, Mst. Niloy Jaman, Md. Lipon Mia, Al-Amin and Nazia Naheen Nisheeth

Wetland environments in Bangladesh, such as rivers, lakes, ponds, beel, baor, and haor, are critical for the feeding, spawning, breeding, and nursing of at least 253 fish species, as well as a variety of freshwater fish and prawns. In addition, they support a number of rural people and provide habitat for a multitude of migrating birds. Bangladesh’s wetlands are classified as freshwater wetlands, saltwater wetlands, and artificial wetlands, with haors belonging to the freshwater wetlands group. Haor is a marshy wetland area that looks like a bowl or saucer. It is inundated for seven to eight months during the wet season, similar to a massive inland sea, and then divides into beels during the dry season. Apart from giving migratory fish and bird species breeding, nursing, and feeding habitats, it boasts around 154 native fish species from 35 families and 12 orders. The biodiversity of fish in haor wetlands has been experiencing a decline due to factors such as overexploitation, environmental degradation, and the persistent challenges posed by climate change. To effectively manage the haor wetland ecosystem, it is strongly recommended that an ecosystem-based co-management approach be adopted. This should involve the active participation of the local community, the establishment of sustainable fishing practices, and the promotion of alternative livelihoods for deprived harvesters who are heavily reliant on these resources. This review paper proposes a simple and practical approach to studying the haor wetlands, the current state of fish biodiversity in the various haor ecosystems of Bangladesh, and related challenges.

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Published on: Feb 7, 2025 Pages: 1-9

Full Text PDF Full Text HTML DOI: 10.17352/2455-8400.000097
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