The present study was implemented in the period from January to December 2017, to assess the assemblage of fish, with the effects of some environmental factors and knowledge the impacts of annual periodic fluctuations between drowning and drought on the abundance and size-spectrum on the fish community in Al-Cibyaish marsh. Water temperature ranged between 13 ͦ C in January to 35 ͦ C in July, salinity from 2.90 PSU (Practical salinity unite) in February to 4.14 PSU in August. Hydrogen ion ranged between 7.60 in July to 8.30 in February. The present study appears contribution of environmental variables in the distribution, widespread and occurrence of fish assemblage in the Al-Chibyaish marsh. A total of 3294 specimens were collected represented 15 fish species affiliated to 15 genera, six families and five orders. Three fish species in present area were formed 72.38% of the total number of species in the marsh. Planiliza abu was the most abundant species formed 35.43%, Alburnus mossulensis, 19.22% and Oreochromis aureus, 17.73%. The ecological indices were within the range of previous studies and described as poor for diversity index ranged between1.38 in June to 1.96 in November. Richness index fluctuated from 0.96 in May and July to 1.96 in April and can express as half integrated. The evenness index values ranged from 0.68 in September to 0.85 in November and December indicate to semi-balanced or slightly balanced. Fish size revealed dominance of the small size due to high mortality in the dry season. The present study affirms prevalence and dominates of historical small native species P. abu and some of the small invasive species, which possess various functional characteristics, enable it to inhabit the marsh.
The fish assemblage structure in Al-Huwaizah marsh, southern of Iraq was assessed. Fish samples collected monthly by different fishing means from period December 2017 to November 2018. A total of 28959 individual of fish belonging to 9 families and 19 species were collected, 11 of them of native species and 8 of alien
species. The numerical dominance index value (D3) of the highest three abundant species comprised 74.26% of the total fish caught, included Planiliza abu (Al-Keshny) 38.2% ; Coptodon zilli (Tilapia red abdomen) 29.41% and Carassius auratus (Prussian carp) 6.65%. The total weight of fish caught 2,190,680 tan, highest weight 312,242kg achieved in July, while lowest weight 41,590 kg found in&nb
The fish assemblage in the East Hammar marsh was studied during December 2009 to May 2010. The fish fauna of the marsh consisted of 17 native, 23 marine (49%) and seven alien species. The dominant species were Liza abu (14.6%), Carassius auratus (13.4%) and Thryssa mystax (11.2%). The resident species formed 44.7%, occasional species 36.1% and seasonal species 19.2% of the total number of fish species. Fish species diversity index ranged from 1.28 to 2.61, richness from 1.98 to 4.50 and evenness from 0.45 to 0.78. Salinity ranged from 1.45 to 7.74‰. The increase in the proportion of marine species (49%) in the fish assemblage due to marine waters progress from Arabian Gulf had an impact on the values of ecological indices and the
... Show MoreMost marshes in Iraq face several challenges as aquatic environments, including pollution by various chemical agents and heavy metals. The current study deal with an analysis of the water quality of Dalmaj marsh as one of the closed aquatic environments in the middle parts of Iraq located between latitudes 32ᵒ 05′ to 32ᵒ 23′N and longitudes 45ᵒ 10′ to 45ᵒ 38′ E. The marsh is suffering from a shortage in water supply, especially during the summer. It will lead to a concentration of heavy metals that are washed and transported to the marsh from the surrounding watersheds through surface runoff. This work aims to analyze water and fish samples to assess heavy metals and their accumulated risk in fish tissues based on
... Show MoreAlien fish species have negative effects on the abundance, diversity and richness of native fish species in southern Iraq. The numbers of alien fish species are constantly increasing due to the entry of invasive species. This has resulted in shifts in the historical composition of fish community structure and scarcity of some native species which represent the keystone in the building of fish populations.
Fish samples were monthly collected from three sites in southern Iraq (Al-Chibyaish marsh, the lower parts of Euphrates River, and the northern part of Shatt Al-Arab River) from April 2017 to June 2018. A total of 14,853 individuals of fish were sampled, which represented 26 species, 24 genera and 13 families
... Show MoreBiodiversity is one of the important biological factors in determining water quality and maintaining the
ecological balance. In this study, there are 223 species of phytoplankton were identified, and they are as
follows: 88 species of Bacillariophyta and were at 44%,70 species of Chlorophyta and they were at 29 %, 39
species of Cyanophyta and they were at 16 %, 12 species of Euglenozoa and they were at 4 %, four species of
Miozoa and they were at 3 %, and, Phylum Charophyta and Ochrophyta were only eight and two species,
respectively and both of them were at 2%. The common phytoplankton recorded in the sites studied
include Nitzschia palea, Scenedesmus quadricauda, Oscillatoria princeps, and Peridinium
Devastated by the combined impact of massive drainage works and upstream damming since the 1980's, Al-Hammar Marsh, Southern Iraq, has completely collapsed with 94 % of its land cover transformed into bare land and salt crusts by 2000. After a policy initiated to restore the Iraqi marshes again in 2003, the marsh recovered about half of its former area. As a part of the ecological recovery assessment of this newly inundated marsh, it is important to investigate the extend impact of desiccation after 3 years of inundation on water quality as the latter plays an important role in the restoration process of the marshes. Therefore, from a restoration point of view, major and trace element distribution and sourcing as well as seasonal variati
... Show MoreAn aggregate of 30 samples (water, sediments, and plants) was collected from Al-Chibayish Marsh, located in Dhi-Qar Governorate southern of Iraq to investigate the bioaccumulation and biomagnification in marsh plants (flora) and to assess the marsh plants pollution condition. The study was conducted by testing the macro elements, microelements, heavy metals, and organic compositions in water, sediments, and plants. Plant analyses revealed that the Salvinia natans plant species had the highest concentrations of macroelements Mg, Ca, Na, P, and N compared with other marsh plants and sediments. As a result, the cation binds itself to be more than one charged cationic site and this behaviour was observed in Salvinia natans sp. which has the
... Show MoreConcentrations and distribution of major, minor, and trace elements were
studied in thirteen sediment samples from Al-Hammar Marsh.
Multivariate statistical techniques such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA)
and Agglomerative Hierarchal Cluster Analysis (AHCA) as well as pollution
analysis such as Enrichment Factor (EF) were used to process the data and identify
the possible sources of elemental constituents in sediment samples.Results of
chemical analysis revealed that Major element mean concentrations were in the
order of Ca> Si> K> Mg> and minor elements were in the order of Al> Fe>S>Cl>
Ti> P>Mn> Sr> N and trace elements were in the order of Cr> Ni> Zr>V>Zn>