Invasive mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, in the Ripoll. © Matt Ford

Check out our video of native cyprinids Barbus meridionalis Risso 1827 and Squalius laietanus Doadrio, Kottelat & de Sostoa 2007. Both species are endemic to a few river basins in northeaster Spain and southern France, in this case the Ripoll River, a tributary within the larger Bésos drainage close to Barcelona. This is a typical Mediterranean river which flows more strongly during winter and spring and contains less water during the dry summer period.

Drought conditions can also extend between years, and a dry winter in 2013/2014 has caused the native fishes to become concentrated in permanent pools. Also present in these refuge habitats are the invasive mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki Girard 1859, pumpkinseed sunfish Lepomis gibbosus (Linnaeus 1758), and red swamp crayfish Procambarus clarkii (Girard 1852), all of which were introduced from the United States in the twentieth century and now represent a serious ecological issue throughout Spain.

This is our first attempt at editing a video with captions, music, etc., so please bear with it!

[youtube=www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfQn9LgUXCk]

© Matt Ford

On 28th October the Spanish conservation and study group ‘Sociedad de Estudios Ictiológicos’ (SEI) released 1200 adult individuals of the Spanish toothcarp, Aphanius iberus, into a coastal lagoon within the protected ‘Espais Naturals del Delta del Llobregat‘ nature reserve, located close to Barcelona. Continue reading »

© SEI/Espais Naturals Delta del Llobregat

Spanish conservation group ‘Sociedad de Estudios Ictiológicos’ (SEI) will be releasing thousands of highly-endangered native killifish known locally as ‘fartet’ into a natural lagoon within the Delta del Llobregat natural park, Barcelona on Sunday 28th October, and anyone in the area that day is invited to join them, help liberate the fish, and learn a little about the challenges involved in maintaining aquatic biotopes in an urbanised environment. Continue reading »