Forty Fishes in Freefall

Many freshwater fish species are on the edge of extinction. FFSG’s upcoming 2025 report ‘Forty Freshwater Fishes in Freefall’ will showcase some of the most threatened. Watch this space for the full report.

Below are a small selection of Critically Endangered freshwater fishes.

Head of very large catfish emerging from water, with vegetation behind, and with a human in the water, with his head next to the gigantic mouth of the fish. Image is shot at night.
Mekong giant catfish, Pangasianodon gigas Critically Endangered ©Zeb Hogan
Five fish swimming against a dark background. They are roughly ovoid, with a long dorsal fin running almost to the tail. They are silver with black striping. The tail is fan shaped.
Chambo, Oreochromis spp.
Critically Endangered ©George Turner
Very young silvery eels (elvers) in a cluster behind a rock, mostly facing right. In the middle is a larger, golden individual, also facing right.
European Eel, Anguilla anguilla
Critically Endangered ©Tim Watts
Young man in a hut, with an enormous fish on the mat in front of him, possible longer than himself. He is holding it on its ventral surface by its stout dorsal fin. It is a robust, heavy-bodied fish, with a head that is rather large for the body, with no barbels, but thick, blubbery lips and silver and black scales about the size of a human palm.
Giant barb, Catlocarpio siamensis
Critically Endangered ©Zeb Hogan
Two small, ovoid fish swimming above a gritty substrate, with a large white rock behind them. One is facing left, and the other right. Both have electric blue bodies with a thick horizontal black stripe along their sides.
Maingano, Pseudotropheus cyaneorhabdos Critically Endangered ©Paul Loiselle
Small, brightly coloured fish, with a green and blue body, and red edges to its fins, dorsal fin, which runs almost the tail, and fan-shaped tail. On the large anal fin, there are orange spots.
Haplochromis hiatus
Critically Endangered ©Paul Loiselle
A shoal of small, slender-bodies orange fish with red finds, swimming leftward, in a habitat with abundant water plants.
Twee River redfin, Pseudobarbus erubescens Critically Endangered ©Jeremy Shelton
Two fish, both facing right. The body is yellow, with black vertical stripes, and reddish colouring toward the head. The anal fin has orange spots on the following edge. The blue-green serrted dorsal fin extends almost to the tail. The tail is fan-shaped.
Astatotilapia latifasciatus
Critically Endangered ©Paul Loiselle
A yellow-green bodied fish with five horizontal black lines along its side, and bright red eyes. The body is somewhat humped toward the head.
Jullien’s Golden Carp, Probarbus jullieni
Critically Endangered ©Brian Zimmerman