Ichthyofaunal diversity and conservation status of Siddheshwar reservoir district Hingoli, Maharashtra, India

Abstract
The study of ichthyofaunal diversity of Siddheshwar reservoir, district Hingoli, Maharashtra, was conducted over a two-year period from January 2015 to December 2016, and the reservoir shows occurrence of rich ichthyofaunal diversity, with a total of 40 fish species belonging to 29 genera, 15 families, and 9 orders in Siddheshwar reservoir. The order Cypriniformes dominated with 18 species, followed by the orders Siluriformes with 8, Channiformes with 4, Preciformes with 3, Clupeiformes and Mastcembeliformes with 2, and the rest of the orders Angulliformes, Beloniformes, and Mugiliformes with a single species. Because of the abundance of food materials, most of the significant fishes may be found in this reservoir. Primary productivity occurs in the form of primary producers (Phytoplanktons and Zooplanktons). According to the IUCN red list categories, 52.5 percent of the species are least concern, 20 percent are not evaluated, 10 percent are near threatened, 5.00 percent are data deficient, 5.00 percent are lower risk near threatened and vulnerable, and 2.5 percent are lower risk least concern. The study reveals that this freshwater body could be beneficial to regional fish variety conservation, particularly for indigenous and endangered fish species.