Studies on biodiversity of selected indigenous fish species, in Beels and Baors of South Bengal and their breeding potential through habitat modification

Abstract

Small indigenous fishes are the cheap sources of animal protein, vitamins, calcium, iron etc. In recent past number of different small indigenous fish species are disappearing from beels, ox-bow lakes due to destruction of breeding ground and several other reasons. A survey on biodiversity of small indigenous fish species in five beels of Nadia and North 24 Parganas districts of West Bengal, India was carried out and five commercially important species were identified to propagate and culture. Breeding behavior of these five species was studied with different habitat modification and critical breeding factor was identified. Population of Gudusia chapra and Chela achius was re-established in Mathura beel, Kanchrapara through erection of pen and certain habitat modification. On the other hand natural breeding of Amblypharyngodon mola and Puntius sophore in farmers’ pond were established. Inundation, flooding and escape of fishes are some of the constraints for which the exact quantification of selected fish recruitment was sometimes difficult to accomplish.