CTG releases three endemic fish species in the upper reach of Jinsha River

China Three Gorges Corporation (CTG) released 27,000 fishes that are endemic to upper reaches of the Yangtze River on November 20, continuing its ecological restoration efforts in the country’s longest river.

The annual event was held at the fish habitat at Heishui River in the Liangshan Prefecture in Sichuan province as part of the efforts to restore the ecology in the Heishui River, a tributary of Jinsha River, the name of the upper stretches of Yangtze River. The fish release can effectively supplement and restock the fish resources in the Heishui River basin.

Launched in December 2018, the Heishui River ecological restoration initiative has made tremendous strides such as the completion of guarantee and monitoring project of ecological water flow, Laomuhe dam removal and ecological restoration project, the ecological restoration project for Songxin Power Station, the project of addition of fish passing-through facilities at Songxin Power Station and releases of endemic fish species.

The fish release event included a popular science session for the local residents and a release activity by the participants. The popular science session introduced and advocated the 10-year fishing ban in the Yangtze River and popularizes knowledge on fish protection and relevant laws and regulations, while the release activity involved parents and their children. The event was designed to raise public’s eco-conservation awareness.

This year’s release includes three fish types; Schizothorax wangchiachii, Leptobotia elongata and Schizothorax prenanti and 15% of the released fishes were tagged with PIT (passive integrated transponder) devices. Researchers will track and monitor the released fishes regularly by using the PIT devices or by capturing the fishes to evaluate the outcomes so as to inform and guide the future ecological restoration efforts.