THE CONSERVATION OF FRESH-WATER FISH - PAST AND PRESENT EXPERIENCE

The conservation of fish and fish communities has received little atte ntion relative to other vertebrates. Yet across Eurasia and North Amer ica, numerous important stocks of various fish species have been elimi nated and there are now thousands of lakes and rivers which are fishle ss or possess only degraded communities. The main problems are caused by engineering works, industrial and domestic pollution, acidification , fishing and fishery management, and land use practices. The major co nservation objective, perhaps fortified by legislation, must be habita t restoration and management, but short-term programmes can usefully i nvolve translocations, captive breeding and cryopreservation. Fish con servation programmes are needed in every country in order to rescue en dangered species and reverse the downward trends facing important fish communities by managing the lake and river systems concerned.