List of introduced fish in Australia
Encyclopedia
Due to its geographical situation and isolation Australia
has distinct fish fauna
, including many endemic species. From the 18th century, early colonisers began introducing a number of exotic species including mammals, plant
, birds and fish
. The introduction of the fish has led to serious ecological damage, most notable being the effect of common carp
in the Murray-Darling Basin
. Introduced carp now dominate the freshwater systems of southern Australia. While the damaging impact of carp is well recognised, little in the way of control measures have been employed to control their spread. Their ability to colonise almost any body of water, even those previously considered to be beyond their physical tolerances, is now well established. Control of exotic fish species is being undertaken by various government departments, though many problems are faced.
Introduced trout species dominate the upland reaches of rivers in south-east Australian, and have had profoundly negatively effects on upland native fish like the mountain galaxias species
, Macquarie perch
and the unfortunately named trout cod
, but due to their popularity as sportsfish, lack of historical records, and loss of angling memories, their damaging effects are not widely acknowledged, or even downplayed.
All recently established exotic fish in Australia stem from the illegal release of aquarium fish species. With the continued and largely uncontrolled importation of many high risk fish species for the aquarium industry, Australia continues to be at risk of further invasions of exotic fish.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
has distinct fish fauna
Fauna
Fauna or faunæ is all of the animal life of any particular region or time. The corresponding term for plants is flora.Zoologists and paleontologists use fauna to refer to a typical collection of animals found in a specific time or place, e.g. the "Sonoran Desert fauna" or the "Burgess shale fauna"...
, including many endemic species. From the 18th century, early colonisers began introducing a number of exotic species including mammals, plant
Plant
Plants are living organisms belonging to the kingdom Plantae. Precise definitions of the kingdom vary, but as the term is used here, plants include familiar organisms such as trees, flowers, herbs, bushes, grasses, vines, ferns, mosses, and green algae. The group is also called green plants or...
, birds and fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
. The introduction of the fish has led to serious ecological damage, most notable being the effect of common carp
Common carp
The Common carp is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia. The wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction, but the species has also been domesticated and introduced into environments worldwide, and is often considered an invasive...
in the Murray-Darling Basin
Murray-Darling Basin
The Murray-Darling basin is a large geographical area in the interior of southeastern Australia, whose name is derived from its two major rivers, the Murray River and the Darling River. It drains one-seventh of the Australian land mass, and is currently by far the most significant agricultural...
. Introduced carp now dominate the freshwater systems of southern Australia. While the damaging impact of carp is well recognised, little in the way of control measures have been employed to control their spread. Their ability to colonise almost any body of water, even those previously considered to be beyond their physical tolerances, is now well established. Control of exotic fish species is being undertaken by various government departments, though many problems are faced.
Mountain galaxias
The mountain galaxias species complex is a group of freshwater Galaxiid fish found all over southeast Australia. They form a cryptic species complex.-Classification:These fish were originally designated as a single species, Galaxias olidus, despite:...
, Macquarie perch
Macquarie perch
The Macquarie perch is an Australian native freshwater fish of the Murray-Darling river system. It is a member of the Percichthyidae family and is closely related to the golden perch ....
and the unfortunately named trout cod
Trout Cod
The trout cod or bluenose cod, Maccullochella macquariensis, is a large predatory freshwater fish of the Maccullochella genus and the Percichthyidae family which was originally found in the south-east corner of the Murray-Darling river system in Australia...
, but due to their popularity as sportsfish, lack of historical records, and loss of angling memories, their damaging effects are not widely acknowledged, or even downplayed.
All recently established exotic fish in Australia stem from the illegal release of aquarium fish species. With the continued and largely uncontrolled importation of many high risk fish species for the aquarium industry, Australia continues to be at risk of further invasions of exotic fish.
List of introduced fish
- American FlagfishFlagfishThe flagfish or American flagfish, Jordanella floridae, is a killifish native to Florida. It received its name because the male fish resembles the American flag, with a large black/blue dot and alternating red and black/blue stripes on its body. It is a common, native fish in Florida that is...
, Jordanella floridae - Atlantic salmonAtlantic salmonThe Atlantic salmon is a species of fish in the family Salmonidae, which is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean and in rivers that flow into the north Atlantic and the north Pacific....
, Salmo salar - Brook troutBrook troutThe brook trout, Salvelinus fontinalis, is a species of fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. In many parts of its range, it is known as the speckled trout or squaretail. A potamodromous population in Lake Superior are known as coaster trout or, simply, as coasters...
, Salvelinus fontinalis - Brown troutBrown troutThe brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....
, Salmo trutta - Chinook SalmonChinook salmonThe Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha, is the largest species in the pacific salmon family. Other commonly used names for the species include King salmon, Quinnat salmon, Spring salmon and Tyee salmon...
, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha - Common carpCommon carpThe Common carp is a widespread freshwater fish of eutrophic waters in lakes and large rivers in Europe and Asia. The wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction, but the species has also been domesticated and introduced into environments worldwide, and is often considered an invasive...
, Cyprinus carpio - Convict cichlidConvict cichlidThe Convict cichlid is a fish species from the family Cichlidae, native to Central America, also known as the zebra cichlid...
, Archocentrus nigrofasciatus - Domingo mosquitofishGambusia dominicensisThe Dominican gambusia, Gambusia dominicensis, is a species of freshwater fish. It is a member of the family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. It is native to Central America. Spread through the aquarium trade, it is an invasive species in some parts of the world....
, Gambusia dominicensis - Eastern mosquitofishEastern mosquitofishThe eastern mosquitofish, Gambusia holbrooki, is a species of freshwater fish that is closely related to the western mosquitofish, Gambusia affinis. It is a member of the family Poeciliidae of order Cyprinodontiformes...
, Gambusia holbrooki - GoldfishGoldfishThe goldfish is a freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae of order Cypriniformes. It was one of the earliest fish to be domesticated, and is one of the most commonly kept aquarium fish....
, Carassius auratus - GuppyGuppyThe guppy , also known as the millionfish, is one of the most popular freshwater aquarium fish species in the world. It is a small member of the Poeciliidae family [females long, males long] and like all other members of the family, is live-bearing....
, Poecilia reticulata - Jack DempseyJack Dempsey (fish)The Jack Dempsey is a cichlid fish that is widely distributed across North and Central America...
, Cichlasoma octofasciatum - MosquitofishMosquitofish in AustraliaMosquitofish were introduced to Australia in 1925, spreading from the northeast coasts south to New South Wales, Southern Australia, and parts of Western Australia by 1934...
, Gambusia affinis - Mozambique mouthbrooderOreochromis mossambicusThe Mozambique tilapia, Oreochromis mossambicus, is a tilapiine cichlid fish native to southern Africa. It is a popular fish for aquaculture...
, Oreochromis mossambicus - One-spot live bearerPhalloceros caudimaculatusPhalloceros caudimaculatus is a species of fish often kept in aquariums, because of the relative ease of breeding....
, Phalloceros caudimaculatus - PlatySouthern platyfishThe southern platyfish, common platy or moonfish is a species of freshwater fish in family Poecilidae of order Cyprinodontiformes. A live-bearer, it is closely related to the green swordtail and can interbreed with it...
, Xiphophorus maculatus - Rainbow troutRainbow troutThe rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....
, Oncorhynchus mykiss - Redfin Perch, Perca fluviatilis
- Roach, Rutilis rutilis
- Rosy barbRosy barbThe rosy barb is a subtropical freshwater fish belonging to the minnow family . It originates in Bengal, India and other parts of Southeast Asia.-Physical description:...
, Puntius conchonius - Sailfin mollySailfin mollyThe sailfin molly, Poecilia latipinna, is a species of fish, of the genus Poecilia. They inhabit fresh, brackish, and coastal waters from North Carolina to Texas and the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico.- Taxonomy :...
, Poecilia latipinna - Speckled mosquitofishPhalloceros caudimaculatusPhalloceros caudimaculatus is a species of fish often kept in aquariums, because of the relative ease of breeding....
, Phalloceros caudimaculatus - Spotted tilapiaSpotted tilapiaThe spotted tilapia is a West African fresh and brackish water fish of the cichlid family7. It is also commonly known as the spotted mangrove cichlid or black mangrove cichlid. Spotted mangrove cichlids have a short rounded snout and three anal spines1...
, Tilapia mariae - Swordtail, Xiphophorus helleri
- TenchTenchThe tench or doctor fish is a freshwater and brackish water fish of the cyprinid family found throughout Eurasia from Western Europe including the British Isles east into Asia as far as the Ob and Yenisei Rivers. It is also found in Lake Baikal...
, Tinca tinca - Weather loachWeather loachThe Dojo Loach , is a freshwater fish in the loach family Cobitidae. They are native to Asia but are also popular as an aquarium fish...
, Misgurnus anguillicaudatus
See also
- Invasive species in AustraliaInvasive species in AustraliaInvasive species are a serious threat to the native biodiversity of Australia and are an ongoing cost to Australian agriculture.Management and the prevention of the introduction of new invasive species are key environmental and agricultural policy issues for the Australian federal and state...
- Fauna of AustraliaFauna of AustraliaThe fauna of Australia consists of a huge variety of animals; some 83% of mammals, 89% of reptiles, 90% of fish and insects and 93% of amphibians that inhabit the continent are endemic to Australia...
- Mosquitofish in AustraliaMosquitofish in AustraliaMosquitofish were introduced to Australia in 1925, spreading from the northeast coasts south to New South Wales, Southern Australia, and parts of Western Australia by 1934...