Tor putitora

Tor putitora, the Putitor mahseer, Himalayan mahseer, or golden mahseer, is an endangered species of cyprinid fish that is found in rapid streams, riverine pools, and lakes in the Himalayan region. Its native range is within the basins of the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers.[1] It was reported to be found in the Salween river, the natural border between Thailand and Myanmar as well, but the number is very rare, only three times in 28 years.[2]

Tor putitora
Babai River, Nepal
Juvenile, about 35 cm (14 in) long
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Actinopterygii
Order: Cypriniformes
Family: Cyprinidae
Genus: Tor
Species:
T. putitora
Binomial name
Tor putitora
(F. Hamilton, 1822)
Synonyms
  • Cyprinus putitora Hamilton, 1822
  • Barbus putitora (Hamilton, 1822)
  • Cyprinus mosal Hamilton, 1822
  • Barbus mosal (Hamilton, 1822)
  • Tor mosal (Hamilton, 1822)
  • Barbus progeneius McClelland, 1839
  • Tor progeneius (McClelland, 1839)
  • Barbus macrocephalus McClelland, 1839

This omnivorous species is generally found near the surface in water that ranges from 13–30 °C (55–86 °F).[3] It is a popular gamefish, once believed to be the largest species of mahseer, and can reach up to 2.75 m (9.0 ft) in length and 54 kg (119 lb) in weight, though most caught today are far smaller.[4]

Its caudal, pelvic, and anal fins show tint of reddish-golden colour. While the body above its lateral line is generally golden in colour at adulthood, the gold colour might be absent in young specimens.
Hamilton's original description says "The head is blunt, oval, small, and smooth". He goes on to say "The mouth is small" and "the lateral line is scarcely distinguishable".[5] However, the largest head of any mahseer species, with a large mouth and prominent lateral line stripe, are features considered to be important in the correct identification of this species.

The Himalayan Golden Mahaseer is the National fish of Pakistan.[6][n 1] It is also the state fish of the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Madhyapradesh and the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.[7]

Nobel Prize Winner for Literature - Rudyard Kipling, wrote: "There he met the mahseer of the Poonch, beside whom the tarpon is a herring, and he who catches him can say he is a fisherman.” (Rudyard Kipling - "The Day's Work" 1898 - "The Brushwood Boy" 1899).

Conservation issues

It is threatened by habitat loss, habitat degradation and overfishing, and it already has declined by more than an estimated 50%.[1] The prospect of large-scale dam building across the distribution range gives cause for concern reflected by the current Red Listing status.
Most researchers believe this fish is in a population decline, hence the Red Listing status of Endangered. Some, however, have noted that Tor putitora is "quite abundant",[8] which also raises questions about the status of ongoing stock augmentation programmes.

Releases beyond native range

Recent releases of artificially bred stock have been into the Irrawaddy River basin in Nagaland, India and, through the Indo-German Biodiversity Programme [9] releases into the Hira Bambai reservoir and small streams around Melghat Tiger Reserve, part of the Tapti River basin.[10] The effect of releasing fish from a different river basin, well outside its native range is uncertain. That these fish are being released over a ten-year period, with as many as 10,000 in each batch, must be considered a huge threat to the native mahseer and other fish species.[11] According to Dr Ogale, former scientist leading the fish breeding programme for Tata Power: "When these mature, there will be more fingerlings which will be then introduced in river Tapi".[12] River Tapi is a west-flowing river of the central Indian state of Maharashtra. Golden mahseer from Lonavala hatchery in Maharashtra, India were supplied to the government of Papua New Guinea[13][14] where the fish escaped into the local Sepik river system after release into the Yonki reservoir. There are fears about the decline of native species following these introductions.[15]

Notes
  1. “The Official National fish of Pakistan” respectively

References
  1. Jha, B.R.; Rayamajhi, A.; Dahanukar, N.; Harrison, A. & Pinder, A. (2018). "Tor putitora". The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T126319882A126322226.en.
  2. Kittipong Jaruthanin and Pong Bang Tan, Monsters of the River 2013, Aquarium Biz, Vol. 4 Issue 39 (September 2013) (in Thai)
  3. IRG Systems South Asia Pvt. Ltd. (December 2014) Cumulative Impact and Carrying Capacity Study of Subansiri Sub Basin including Downstream Impacts. Final Report, volume 1. Central Water Commission, India.
  4. Froese, Rainer; Pauly, Daniel (eds.) (2012). "Tor putitora" in FishBase. January 2012 version.
  5. Hamilton, Francis (28 November 1822). "An account of the fishes found in the river Ganges and its branches". Printed for A. Constable and company. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  6. "Pakistan". Archived from the original on 2016-11-28.
  7. "State Fishes of India" (PDF). National Fisheries Development Board, Government of India. Retrieved 25 December 2020.
  8. "(PDF) International Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Studies 2016; 4(1): 341-347 Distribution record on abundance of Tor putitora in Jammu waters". Researchgate.net. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  9. "Good Practices of Access and Benefit Sharing" (PDF). Indo-germanbiodiversity.com. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  10. "Golden Mahashir fish fingerlings released in Hira Bambai reservoir". Thehitavada.com. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  11. "Conservation project helps revive Mahseer in rivers". The Times of India. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  12. "Mahseer fish makes a comeback in Melghat". Punemirror.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  13. Nautiyal, Prakash; Babu, Suresh; Behera, Sandeep (2013). Mahseer Conservation in India Status, Challenges and the Way Forward. WWF-India.
  14. Coates, D. (1997). Fish stocking activities undertaken by the Sepik River Fish Stock Enhancement Project (1987-1993) and the FISHAID Project (1993-1997) (PDF) (Report). Rome: FISHAID Project.
  15. Dudgeon, David; Smith, Ross E. W. (2006-02-28). "Exotic species, fisheries and conservation of freshwater biodiversity in tropical Asia: the case of the Sepik River, Papua New Guinea". Aquatic Conservation: Marine and Freshwater Ecosystems. 16 (2): 203–215. doi:10.1002/aqc.713. ISSN 1052-7613.
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