Supported by the IUCN SSC Freshwater Fish Specialist Group, today IUCN has released the updated European Red List of Freshwater Fishes – the most comprehensive assessment in 15 years of Europe’s aquatic biodiversity. It finds that nearly six in ten native European freshwater fish species are now of elevated conservation concern, with 42% threatened with extinction, and an additional 18% classified as Near Threatened, highlighting the need for urgent conservation action for Europe’s freshwater fishes.
Ford, M., Adams, C., Amaral, S., Artaev, O., Bănăduc, D., Barbieri, R., Bean, C., Bravničar, J., Buj, I., Ćaleta, M., Carosi, A., Denys, G., Didenko, A., Doadrio, I., Filipe, A. F., Freyhof, J., Golub, D., Kostov, V., Lorenzoni, M., Magalhães, M. F., Marčić, Z., Marić, S., Oikonomou, A., Perea, S., Ribeiro, F., Šanda, R., Seehausen, O., Selz, O., Shumka, S., Simonović, P., Stefanov, T., Clay, J., Sayer, C. A., Shirkhorshidi, M. and Trottet A. (2026). Measuring the pulse of European biodiversity. European Red List of Freshwater Fishes. Brussels, Belgium: European Commission. https://doi.org/10.2779/880135