Fishing ban halts seven decades of biodiversity decline in the Yangtze River
Hunan University of Science and Technology · Institute of Hydrobiology · +11 more institutions
Abstract
China's rapid economic development has triggered an unparalleled freshwater biodiversity crisis since the 1950s. To restore fisheries resources, the Yangtze River Fishing Ban was implemented in 2021 to cease all basin-wide commercial fishing. We evaluate the effectiveness of this large-scale conservation action by assessing fish communities across mainstem habitats before and after the ban (2018 to 2023). The seven-decadal biodiversity loss was halted with improvements in fish biomass, body condition, species diversity, and initial recovery of threatened species. Eliminating fishing pressure was likely key to this recovery, in addition to actions targeting water quality improvement, hydrological and riparian…
Citation impact
- FWCI
- 136.26
- Percentile
- 100%
- References
- 58
Authors
10- FXFangyuan XiongCorresponding
Hunan University of Science and Technology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Scientific Institute of Pearl River Water Resources Protection, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- ZLZ. Li
Hunan University of Science and Technology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Zhejiang Institute of Freshwater Fisheries, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
- SBSébastien Brosse
Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Institut National Polytechnique de Toulouse, Géosciences Environnement Toulouse, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
- JDJulian D. Olden
University of Washington
- SJSteven J. Cooke
Carleton University
Topics & keywords
- Biodiversity
- Threatened species
- Fishing
- Riparian zone
- Habitat destruction
- Habitat
- Endangered species