IUCN, the International Union for Conservation of Nature

The conservation status and distribution of 253 species of endemic freshwater fishes in the Mediterranean basin have been assessed by expert ichthyologists in the Mediterranean region and staff from the IUCN Freshwater Biodiversity Assessment Programme and the IUCN Red List Programme.

The assessment reveals that seven species have become Extinct and one is Extinct in the Wild. Moreover, 56% of the evaluated fishes are threatened, of which 18% are Critically Endangered, 18% Endangered and 20% Vulnerable.

A number of sites have been identified as regionally important for endemism or as centres of threatened species for freshwater fishes.

The greatest concentration of threatened endemic Mediterranean freshwater fishes is in the Lower Guadiana River in southern Spain and Portugal, which includes 11 species of endemic fish. Other sites that have been identified as regionally important for endemism and threatened endemic species are the Po river basin in northern Italy, the lower Orontes in southwest Turkey, and Lake Kinneret in Israel.

Water pollution and extraction are the most relevant causes of threat, however the assessment did highlight other major threats, such as the restricted range of populations (often only present in a single river system) and the limited dispersal of species, as well as invasive species and the construction of dams.

Main conservation measures include the integrated management of rivers, so as to improve the quantity and quality of water because of the pollution; as well as targeted actions, such as education initiatives, to raise people's awareness regarding the natural values of rivers and wetlands.