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Int. J. BioRes.1 (3): 37-41 March, 2010 Nath et al.Full Length Research PaperA STUDY ON THE FISH BIODIVERSITY OF BORULIA HAOR, NIKLI, KISHOREGONJ*P C D Nath 1 , S K Debnath 2 , R Sharmin 2 , S Benerjee 3 , M G Faroque 3 and M M Ali 4Department of Aquaculture 1 , Department of Fisheries Technology 2 , Department of Fisheries Management 3 , Departmentof Aquaculture 4 , Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh-2202, Bangladesh*Correspondence:Accepted on 17 March 2010ABSTRACTA study was conducted to find out the fish biodiversity and socio-economic condition of fishermen in Borulia haorareas, located in Nikli upazila under the district of Kishoregonj for twelve weeks from July to October, 2008. A total of47 fish species belonged to 19 families and 31 genera were identified from the haor. Among 8 common groups offishes 7 species of carps, 12 species of catfishes, 4 species of snakeheads, 3 species of eels, 8 species of minnows, 2species of clupeids and 7 miscellaneous species were recorded. Comparing dominancy of abundance among commongroups of fishes, minnows (28.23%), carps (22.66%) and snakeheads (20.21%) took first, second and third positionrespectively considering weight. Numerically minnows (73.75%), catfishes (6.23%) and perches (5.84%) were first,second and third dominant groups respectively. Various recommendations and measures have been suggested toimprove the fish biodiversity.Key words: Fish biodiversity, Catch composition, Common groups, Comparative abundance.INTRODUCTIONThe word ‘haor’ basically derived from the word ‘saior’ which is the local pronunciation of sagor in haorregion (Khan, 1990). During monsoon the boundless deep waterbody of 'haor' with strong wave looks like a sea. So, it isalso called ‘inland sea’. During wet season each of the settlements looks like an isolated island in a vastwater body. The haor is inundated with monsoon rain and upstream water. The depth of inundation variesfrom 1 m to 10 m (Talukder, 1993). Haors are combination of floodplains and beels which go under water in monsoon andin dry season the beels are isolated as the floodplains dry up (Nishat, 1993). A haor in general may besubdivided into three major areas which have similar characteristics in terms of morphology and hydrology: thepiedmont area around the hill foot, the floodplains and the deeply flooded area (Hossain and Nishat, 1989).The term biodiversity has been widely used, misused and interpreted. Article 2 of the Convention on BiologicalDiversity (UNDP, 1992) defines biological diversity as: The variability among living organisms from allsources including, interalia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes ofwhich they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.” Bangladesh is enrichedwith her diversity of aquatic biological resources containing 260 species of freshwater finfish belonging to 55 families(placing Bangladesh third in the world in terms of fish species per land area), 150 species of waterfowl, 50species of reptiles. 24 species of mammals, 19 species of amphibians, 63 species of palaemonid and penaeid prawns(Rahman, 1989), 25 species of edible tortoise and turtles, and 17 species of crabs, freshwater mussels, and snails.Moreover, 15 exotic fish species also contributed and diversified total fishery resources of the country (Rahman,1989). The world-wide loss of biodiversity is widely accepted as a major problem, yet it is poorly documentedbecause of our poor knowledge on the taxonomy of most organisms (Moyle and William, 1990). Paul (1997) statedthat 143 indigenous species and 8 exotic species of fish inhabiting in the northeast region of which carps andcatfishes are dominant groups.MATERIALS AND METHODSSelection and description of the study siteBorulia haor at Nikli upazila in Kishoregonj district was selected for the present study. The primary criterion for theselection of the study area was a suitable geographical coverage for wider variety of biodiversity and good numbers ofdependent fishermen as far as possible. The Borulia haor is located around the Nikli sadar and surrounded by 5 villagesunder 3 union named Chhatir char, Nikli and Shingpur. The names of the villages are Chhatir char, Purbagram,Mohorkona, Kesobpur, Ghoradigha. The Borulia haor is connected with the Ghorautra river which is the main source ofwater in the haor. The Ghorautra river is originated from the Dhonu river at its upstream and falls in the Meghna river atits downstream. Almost entire haor was dried up during dry season except some Jolmohols (waterbodies with small area).The water area during rainy season was 3225 ha and that in dry season was 1075ha.Selection and category of fishermen as sampleIn this study total 60 fishermen were randomly selected from the villages surrounding the haor. Fishermen werecategorized into five groups on the basis of fishing gears which were used by them. Each group had 12 members (seinenet, cast net, big cast net, gill net, push net) operating the same gear. New members were selected in each group at everysampling day.Period of the studyData were collected by the researcher himself through personal interview with the fishers. The study was conducted for aperiod of 12 weeks from July to October, 2008.37

Int. J. BioRes.1 (3): 37-41 March, 2010 Nath et al.Preparation of questionnaireIn order to get a complete picture of fish biodiversity to fulfill the objectives of the study, a questionnaire was prepared.Method of fish biodiversity studyFor the study of biodiversity of Borulia haor, sampling of catches and their assessment were carried out once in a week.Data were collected from every 5 groups at each sampling day. The representative sample was taken by hand withoutrepetition of the same gear in each sampling day. The collected fishes were identified and sorted species-wise and thenumber of individuals for each species were counted and then percent composition was determined. The Taxonomicguide by Rahman (1989) was used for the identification of fish species. Museum and Laboratory specimen of Faculty ofFisheries, BAU, Mymensingh were also used for this purpose.Source of data collectionDuring collection of data, both primary and secondary sources are considered. Primary data were collected fromfishermen by the researcher himself. The secondary information was collected from fisheries offices, SSS (Society forSocial Service) at Nikli Upazila.RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONBangladesh has a globally important wetland ecosystem and associated with approximately 260 indigenous freshwaterspecies (Rahman, 1989). But during the study period a total of 47 species were recoded in the catches of different gearsused by the fishermen in the Borulia haor. So, its fish biodiversity is very little in comparison with the total fishbiodiversity of Bangladesh. A total 47 species of fish and prawns belonged to 19 families and 31 genera were recordedfrom the Borulia haor. Fifty four (54) species of fish were recorded by Rahman and Hasan (1992) from the Kaptai lakewhich was somewhat close to the findings of present study. On the other hand similar number of fish species was notedby Haque et al. (1999) who recorded 43, 58 and 60 fish species from different types of Oxbow Lake Project (OLP). Atotal of 40 species of fish including exotic species was observed in Chanda beel (Ehshan et al. 2002) and Salda beel (Sahaand Hossain, 2002) which were relatively lower than that of Borulia haor. Seventy five (75) of species of fish belongingto 23 families and 50 genera were recorded from different aquatic habitat (pond, lake, canal, river and paddy field)reported by Paik and Chokraborty (2003) which was comparatively higher in number than Borulia haor. Comparativelymore number of fish species was recorded in the beels of Sylhet-Mymensingh basin (Haroon et al. 2002). Relatively lessnumber of fish species than this investigation was recorded in chenderon reservoir, India, illustrated in the report of Kahwaiand Ali (2001). In Namada river Maheshwari (2004) reported 57 fish species which was close to the findings of thepresent study. Huang et al. (2001) had been scrutinized that about 100 species are commonly found in chinese reservoir.NumberWeight80Catch composition (% wt & % No.)706050403020100CarpFig 1CatfishPerchSnakeheadMinnowsCommon groups of fishesFig. 2. Catch composition assemblage by common group ofrelated fish species in Borulia haor during study period (July-October, 2008).EelsClupeidMiscellineousTable 1. Species wise catch composition of different types of net used in Borulia haor (by average number andpercentage)Sl.NoCommon groupsSpeciesAverage number of fish ineach catch of different netsSeine Cast Gill Pushnet net net netBigcastnetTotal Totalcatch catch ofof each sp.each (wt.in kg)sp.(no.)1. Cyprinus carpio 2 - 1 - - 3 1.012. Labeo calbasu 2 - - - - 2 0.413. Labeo rohita 2 1 1 - - 4 2.02CarpsTotalcatch ineachcommongroup(no.)Total catchin eachcommongroup (wt.inkg)% of totalcatch ofeachcommongroup(no)% of totalcatch ofeachcommongroup(wt.in kg)22 8.14 2.10 22.6638

Int. J. BioRes.1 (3): 37-41 March, 2010 Nath et al.Sl.NoCommon groupsSpeciesAverage number of fish ineach catch of different netsSeine Cast Big Gill Pushnet net cast net netnetTotalcatchofeachsp.(no.)Totalcatch ofeach sp.(wt.in kg)4. Labeo gonius 2 - - - - 2 0.515. Hypophthalmichthys molitrix 2 - 1 1 - 4 2.096. Catla catla 1 - 2 - - 3 1.027. Cirrhinus cirrhosus 2 - 2 - - 4 1.088. Mystus tengara 6 2 3 - 1 12 0.249. Mystus vittatus 8 1 2 3 1 15 0.3110. Mystus gulio 5 2 2 3 - 12 0.3611. Pseudotropius atherinoides 2 1 1 - - 4 0.1212. Ailia coila 2 - - - - 2 0.1013. Ompok pabda 4 - 2 - - 6 0.24Catfishes14. Wallago attu 1 - 1 - - 2 1.0915. Mystus aor 4 - 1 - - 5 1.1916. Bagarius bagarius - - 1 - - 1 0.2017. Heteropneustes fossilis - 2 2 - - 4 0.2118. Clarias batrachus 1 - 1 - - 2 0.1519. Channa punctatus 17 3 4 - 1 25 1.9120. Channa striatus 4 - 1 - - 5 1.8921. Channa orientalis 5 1 2 1 1 10 1.5822. Channa marulius 4 - 1 1 - 6 1.88Snake-heads23. Chanda baculis 2 1 - - 1 4 0.0224. Chanda ranga 4 1 2 - 1 8 0.0825. Chanda nama 7 2 4 - 2 15 0.1626. Colisa fasciatus 10 5 5 - 2 22 0.3327. Anabas testudineus 4 1 2 4 1 12 1.5028. Macrognathus aculeatus - 3 2 - 2 7 0.3029. Mastacembelus armatus 2 3 3 - 1 9 0.5630. Mastacembelus pancalus 2 4 2 - 2 10 0.5831. Chela phulo 25 - 6 - 5 36 0.7132. Chela bacaila 15 5 8 - - 28 0.9833. Amblypharyngodon mola 150 25 7 - 8 190 2.5834. Rohtee cotio 40 10 12 - 3 65 0.7935. Puntius sophore 200 17 21 10 6 254 3.10PerchesEelsMinnows36. Puntius ticto 42 11 14 - 4 71 1.2937. Esomus danricus 93 13 14 - 3 123 1.2438. Aplocheilus panchax - - - - 3 3 0.0539. Gudusia chapra 2 1 1 - - 4 0.2040. Gudusia minminna 7 2 3 - - 12 0.50ClupeidsTotalcatch ineachcommongroup(no.)Total catchin eachcommongroup (wt.inkg)% of totalcatch ofeachcommongroup(no)% of totalcatch ofeachcommongroup(wt.in kg)65 4.21 6.23 11.7246 7.26 4.41 20.2161 2.09 5.84 5.8226 1.44 2.49 4.0177010.14 73.75 28.2316 0.70 1.50 1.9541. Glossogobius giuris 2 - 1 1 1 5 0.2642. Lapidocephalus guntea - 2 2 - - 4 0.1043. Xenentodon cancila 1 - 1 - - 2 0.07 38 1.94 3.64 5.4044. Tetradon cutcutia - 1 2 - - 3 0.1145. Notopterus chitala 2 - - - - 2 0.8846. Macrobrachium4 5 - - - 7 0.41rossenbergii47. Macrobrachium- - - - 15 15 0.11malcomsoniiTotal 690 123 143 24 64 1044 35.92 1044 35.92 100 100MiscellaneousLegends: %= percent;Cyprinidae was found to be the most dominant family in view of species variety and Bagridae and Channidae occupiedsecond position of abundant after Cyprinidae recorded in the Borulia haor. Borulia haor represented by Cyprinidae with13 species followed by, Bagridae and Channidae each belonged four species, Centropomidae and Mastacembelidae eachrepresented three species, Schilbeidae, Siluridae, Anabantidae, Clupeidae, Palmonidae each belonged two species andother families each belonged one species.A total of 75 fish species belonged to 23 families were recorded from different Indian waterbodies (closed and open)which was dominated by Cyprinidae (28 species) followed by Bagridae, Centropomidae with five species each, andChannidae and Cobitidae contained four species each and Mastacembelidae and Siluridae contained three species eachand other families belonged two species each (Paik and chakraborty 2003). Pipoppinyo et al. (1998) noted that 52 speciesof fish belonged to 16 families, with 34 genera had been observed in pen Mae Sa watershed in Thailand. Srivastava et al.(2000) noted that 43 species belonged to 10 families and 26 genera recorded from semi-closed Tawa reservoir of which39

Int. J. BioRes.1 (3): 37-41 March, 2010 Nath et al.Cyprinidae was represented by 27 species and Bagridae and Siluridae each with three species and Schilbeidae,Ambassidac and Channidae each with two species and other families contained single species which agreed with theresults of present study. A total of 15 species of Cyprinidae, 3 species of Channidae and 2 species of Siluridae andone species of each other families represented fish community of semi-closed Markonahalli reservoir (Ramakrishniah andDas, 1998). Cyprinidae represented major contribution with large number of species in respect to numerical composition indifferent open water bodies reported by Giri et al, (2004); Mohan and Singh (2004) which almost support the findings ofthe present study.Borulia haors is dominated by minnows (28.23%) and followed by carps (22.66%) in respect of weight. In view ofnumerical composition, minnows (73.75%) were recorded the most dominant group and Puntius sophore was found to bemore abundant species (24.33%) in Borulia haor. Boro beel dominated by minnows (25.97%) considering weight andnumerically Puntius sophore was found to be more abundant species (24.33%) recorded in Boro beel and Borobila beel(Saha 2007). Present observation agreed with the findings the Haroon et al. (2002) who reported that Puntius spp. werethe most dominant genera in the Mymensingh-Sylhet basin and it was also regarded as rich species in Dighali beel, India(Sugunan and Bhattacharjya, 2000). Similarly, Puntius sp. was the most available fish species in Chanda, BSKB and Haltibeels (Hossain et al., 2000). Minnows were found to be abundant group of fishes in the catches of beels located atMymensingh Sylhet basin (Haroon et al., 2002).In respect of weight composition snakeheads (20.21%) were recorded as third dominant group after minnows and carps.Catfishes (6.2%) were contributed as second dominating groups followed by minnows in numerical abundancecomposition observed in Borulia haor. Catfishes (23.74%) were contributed as second dominating group followed byminnows and carps in numerical abundance composition observed in Boro beel. Catfishes were found to be the mostdominant group contributed by riverine and migratory catfishes in the beels of the Mymensingh-Sylhet basin (Haroonet al., 2002), Saldu beel (Saha and Hossain, 2002), Himavathy reservoir of Karnataka (Ramakrishniah et al., 2000) andthe Narmada river, India (Maheshwari, 2004) which support the findings of the present study.Perches (5.84%) showed dominancy as third position in response to the numerical fish composition. It contributed 5.82%fish in respect of weight recorded in Borulia haor. Eels had significant role to enrich the fish biodiversity incase of bothnumber (2.49%) and weight (4.01%) composition of fish. In numerical abundance perches showed comparabledominancy in common groups recorded in Gawha beel (Saha, 2007).Clupeids provide 1.95% of biomass compared to the total weight of different fishes in the haor. Its percent of number(1.50%) is lower than other groups of fishes. Miscellaneous fish species provide 5.4% of biomass to the total weight offish biodiversity. In this connection Macrobrachium malcolmsonii is significantly dominant in numerical abundance inthe study haor. Prawn (Macrobrachium malcolmsonii) found in Borulia haor in terms of numerical abundances of fishand prawn species assemblage by common groups agreed with the findings of Sugunan and Bahattacharjya (2000).CONCLUSIONVarie ties of fish species were observed in Borulia haor. 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