Threatened fishes of the world: Barbus haasi (Mertens 1925) (Cyprinidae)

Rafael Miranda, Pedro M. Leunda, Carmen Escala & Javier OscozDepartment Zoology & Ecology, University of Navarra E-31080 Pamplona, Navarra, Spain, EU(e-mail: rmiranda@unav.es)

Common name: Barbo colirrojo (Spanish). Conservation status: Vulner-

able (VUA2ce, IUCN 2003). Rare (Spanish RedData BookVertebrate,

Blanco & Gonzalez 1992). Identification: D III–IV+7–8, A III+5, V

I+8, P 18, pharyngeal teeth 5+3+2, LL 41–56. Reaches 300 mm TL.

The head is largewith a longwidemouth.Thick lips, the lowerwith awell

developed median lobe. This species presents two pairs of thick barbels,

the anterior one not reaching the front edge of the eye and the posterior

barbelnot reaching the rear edgeof the eye.Lastunbranchedrayof thedorsalfinwith small denticles.Analfin is longandcaudalpeduncle is

short and high. Body presents dark blotches. Part of caudal, anal and pelvic fins are red. Drawing by RafaelMiranda.Distribution:Most

headwater streamsof theEbroRiverBasin andNorthMediterranean rivers of the IberianPeninsula.Abundance:Restricted to headwaters

and occasionally in middle reaches of streams, scarce where present.Habitat and ecology:This benthonic species prefers upper reaches of

rivers, with high flow and clear, cold waters. Barbus haasi occurs in rocky and vegetated areas and feeds on macroinvertebrates (mainly

Chironomidae,EphemeropteraandTrichoptera).Reproduction:The spawningperiodextends throughoutApril andJune, related toperiods

of high streamflow.Fecundity ranges from2000 to7000 eggsper female.Themales havean earlymaturity (oneyear) andgrowmore slowly

than females.The females live for 8 yearswhile themales only live for 7 years.The females havemultiple spawning, releasing two tofive egg

batches depending on their size, such that largest females spawnmore batches than the small ones (Aparicio & Sostoa 1998).Threats:The

species is threatenedby invasive alien fish species (mainly piscivores) andhabitat loss due towater abstraction, construction of small dams,

stream desiccation, etc. Anthropogenic water pollution is another important disturbance factor. This endemic species of the Iberian

Peninsula is currently in rapiddeclinebecause theabovenoted impactsare intensifiedby thecharacteristic irregularityof theMediterranean

rivers.Conservation action:None.Conservation recommendations:Waste water and water pollution control and treatment. Correction of

the impact of stream regulation bywater releases to simulate natural flowpatterns. Prevent alien fish species introductions and eradication

of the existing alien species which impact on B. haasi. Habitat protection and control of invasive alien fish species are the main actions

necessary toprevent the furtherdeclineofBarbushaasi.Remarks:Therehasbeensomecontroversywithregard to the systematicpositionof

B. haasi. It was considered a transitory type betweenB. barbus andB. bocagei. In 1971Almaca suggested that it belonged toB. bocagei, but

later (1982) concluded that itwas a subspecies ofB. plebejus.However,Doadrio (1990) andMachordomet al. (1995) considered it a species

related to B. meridionalis. In 1998 Bianco included B. haasi, along with B. graellsii and B. guiraonis, in the genus Messinobarbus and so

separated them from the remaining species. Today the species is considered closely related toB.meridionalis, in the genusBarbus (Doadrio

et al. 2002).

Almaca, C. 1971. Sur la Collection de Barbeaux (Genre et Sous-genre Barbus) Iberiques et Nord-Africains du Forschungsinstitut

Senckenberg (Frankfurt A.M.). Arq. Mus. Bocage 21(3): 1–5.

Almaca, C. 1982. Re-examination of the types of Barbus haasi Mertens, 1924. Senckenb. Biol. 63(1–2): 33–38.

Aparicio, E. & A. De Sostoa. 1998. Reproduction and growth of Barbus haasi in a small stream in the N.E. of the Iberian peninsula.

Arch. Hydrobiol. 142(1): 95–110.

Bianco, P.G. 1998. Diversity of barbine fishes in southern Europe with description of a new genus and a new species (Cyprinidae). Ital.

J. Zool. 6: 125–136.

Blanco, J.C. & J.L. Gonzalez. 1992. Libro rojo de los vertebrados de Espana. ICONA, Madrid, 714 pp.

Doadrio. I. 1990. Phylogenetic relationships and classification of western palaeartic species of the genus Barbus (Osteichthyes, Cyp-

rinidae). Aquat. Living Resour. 3: 265–282.

Doadrio, I., J.A. Carmona, A. Machordom. 2002. Haplotype diversity and phylogenetic relationships among the Iberian barbels

(Barbus, Cyprinidae) reveal two evolutionary lineages. J. Hered. 93: 140–147.

Froese, R. & D. Pauly. (ed.) 2003. FishBase. World Wide Web electronic publication. www.fishbase.org, version 19 January 2004.

Machordom, A., I. Doadrio & P. Berrebi. 1995. Phylogeny and evolution of the genus Barbus in the Iberian Peninsula as revealed by

allozyme electrophoresis. J. Fish Biol. 47: 211–236.

World Conservation Monitoring Centre 1996. Barbus haasi. In: IUCN 2003. 2003 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. www.red-

list.org. Downloaded on 19 January 2004.

Environmental Biology of Fishes (2005) 72: 282 � Springer 2005