DEHRADUN: An internal study of the Wildlife Institute of India reveals climate change will adversely affect around 150 native fish species of the Himalayan states, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Arunachal Pradesh.
Common snow trout, found in the Himalayas and much sought after as food, alone is likely to lose around 21% of its existing space of 16,251 square km.
Scientists say “continuous stalking of natural habitat by human being” is a major factor that is adding upon the miseries of the Himalayan fishes. Other factors include pollution, global warming, damming of rivers and introduction of exotic fish.
Brown trout, a carnivorous invasive fish species, which was introduced in the Himalayas in 1860 by the British, has also emerged as a major threat to native fish species.
According to the scientists, over 200 major Himalayan dams also pose a grave risk to the habitat of the native fish species.
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