On 21 April, we celebrate World Fish Migration Day (WFMD), which aims to recover healthy rivers and prevent future degradation and species extinction. Migratory fish make up a crucial link in the food chain and play an important role in healthy and productive river systems.
Furthermore they provide an important food supply and livelihood for millions of people around the world.
Protecting migratory fish starts by protecting wetland habitats
Wetlands are very important in life cycle of fish across the world. Healthy wetlands are vital to the survival of most fish species because they fulfill their essential needs:
- Fish and shellfish feed on plants and other organic matter that exist in wetlands.
- Wetlands provide vegetated areas where fish can reproduce. They are also suitable spawning and nursery areas for fish by hiding eggs among wetland edges and underwater grasses.
- Wetland vegetation provides shelter from predators and from inclement weather.
- Wetlands provide clean water that fish need because of its function of filtering water by removing sediments and pollutants that could kill fish and amphibian eggs.
- Wetlands represent the connection from the rivers to the sea, and healthy and connected wetlands allow successful migration through them.
source: www.medwet.org
Download more about World Fish Migration Day