Ali, P. H. Anvar

Prasad, G.

Raghavan, R, Chinese Acad Sci, Inst Hydrobiol, Wuhan, Peoples R China

Raghavan, Rajeev

Sujarittanonta, Lavanchawee

Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy Of Sciences

OPINION 
 
CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 92, NO. 12, 25 JUNE 2007 1671 
‘Boom and bust fishery’ in a biodiversity hotspot – Is the  
Western Ghats losing its most celebrated native ornamental fish,  
Puntius denisonii Day? 
 
Rajeev Raghavan, G. Prasad, P. H. Anvar Ali and Lavanchawee Sujarittanonta 
 
Streams and rivers in the Kerala part of 
the Western Ghats are an exceptional 
hotspot of freshwater fish diversity1, having 
an immensely rich and diverse ichthyo-
fauna of around 207 species2, including 
food, ornamental and sport fishes3. Among 
these, the native ornamental fishes form 
the most important component of the regio-
nal biodiversity from an eco-biological 
and socio-economic perspective.  
 The ornamental fish fauna of Kerala is 
contributed by 106 species4. Among 
these, no single species has received at-
tention as much as the red-lined torpedo 
fish, Puntius denisonii Day, an endemic 
and endangered cyprinid5. Locally known 
as ‘chorakanni’, literally meaning bleed-
ing eyes, and more popular as ‘Miss 
Kerala’, this native barb has become one 
of India’s biggest exports in recent times6. 
Market studies have confirmed that P. 
denisonii is the most preferred ornamen-
tal fish in the international trade and is 
being exported from India in consistent 
numbers7. The species was collected for 
the first time in 1996 and sent to Ger-
many, and has been a regular among the 
native ornamental fishes exported from 
Kerala since then. The opening up of the 
Cochin International Airport in 1999 
probably stimulated an increased trade, 
as the region became connected to Sin-
gapore (the single largest market for na-
tive ornamental fishes from Kerala) by 
daily flights.  
 An alarming yet predictable increase 
in the export of P. denisonii, and an as-
sociated decline in its wild population 
have been witnessed in recent years. Re-
ports8 have suggested that the wild stock 
of the species has dwindled at a rate of 
70% during the period 2000–04. The 
catch per hour for P. denisonii in the 
various rivers of Kerala was found to be 
low, ranging from 0.002 to 0.042, proba-
bly indicative of the extreme fishing 
pressure that the species is being sub-
jected to9, resulting in its low abundance. 
Although there are no direct measures of 
the population status of the Denison’s 
barb till date, there exists a general con-
sensus among scientists and researchers 
in the region that the fish has become 
rare
2,4,9
 and its population has declined 
precipitously.  
 The fact that wild stocks have declined 
and the species has become scarce in the 
trade can also be confirmed by the sharp 
increase in its market price over the last 
few years. Saturation in market supply 
due to decline in catches has probably 
resulted in an increase in retail prices for 
this species from US$ 8 per piece at the 
start of the decade10 to the current 
value6,11 of US$ 20–30. This gradual in-
crease in price witnessed over the last 
few years, has certainly driven the flow 
of more catches from the wild, turning 
the stock position into a downward spiral. 
 Given the nature of marketing involv-
ing various stakeholders like collectors 
(locals belonging to tribes and forest 
communities who survive on subsistence 
level), intermediaries, wholesalers and 
exporters, engaged in what can be descri-
bed as a clandestine and surreptitious 
trade, it has been extremely difficult to 
track and precisely quantify the trade in 
P. denisonii. A large share of the exports 
is also channelled through non-conventional 
routes and is seldom documented and re-
corded.  
 Although P. denisonii is known to be 
found in as many as nine rivers in Kerala, 
its distribution is restricted to certain 
specific locales of these rivers and most 
stocks are known to be highly frag-
mented. Pooyamkutty (Periyar River), 
Vettilapara (Chalakudy River) and Iritty 
(Valapatanam River) are the epicentres 
of mass-scale collection of this species in 
view of the comparatively large popula-
tions that these locales sustain. However, 
as wild stocks in these sites are declin-
ing, supply sources are changing and col-
lectors are moving onto new locales for 
exploitation.  
 Despite being the most celebrated and 
perhaps the most threatened native fish 
species, P. denisonii has not been well 
documented in the literature. Lack of any 
data on this species is also evident from 
Fishbase – the world’s largest encyclo-
paedia on fishes. Our current knowledge 
of the biology of the species is princi-
pally in the form of grey literature, indi-
cating that the species is herbivore and 
that its spawning season corresponds 
with the regional monsoon12. To the best 
of our knowledge, the only available peer-
reviewed publication is on the length–
weight relationship of this species from 
the Bharatapuzha River13.  
 Even though captive breeding techno-
logy has been standardized for thirteen 
native ornamental species of Kerala14, no 
breakthrough has yet been achieved with 
P. denisonii. High rates of female morta-
lity and a skewed sex ratio favouring 
males are the major factors that have 
hampered the closing of its life cycle in 
captivity8.  
 We believe that P. denisonii presents 
the most complex challenge to conserva-
tion biologists of the Western Ghats in 
recent times. First, because the entire 
volume of exports for the last ten years 
(and also in the foreseeable future) has 
been based on collections from the 
streams of Kerala and subsequently by 
the fact that no scientific data are avail-
able on aspects of its population, fishery 
or life history.  
 The organized fishery for P. denisonii 
in the streams of the Kerala part of the 
Western Ghats is a ‘boom and bust fish-
ery’15, where a newly discovered popula-
tion is being rapidly exploited for trade, 
resulting in its eventual collapse. In an 
open-access fishery devoid of any quotas 
or access restrictions, the race to exploit 
and market the product has no doubt led 
to a rapid collapse of the wild stock. In 
spite of being the focus of a flourishing 
trade, it is highly disappointing that the 
species has received rather poor attention 
from the concerned government authorities 
and conservationists. Additional worry is 
due to the fact that the government agen-
cies are actively promoting the marketing 
and export of this fish without focusing 
on their resource characteristics. An urgent 
consideration is therefore needed from 
scientists, policy makers and relevant 
government agencies to take up the cause 
of this species, conduct baseline studies 
OPINION 
 
CURRENT SCIENCE, VOL. 92, NO. 12, 25 JUNE 2007 1672 
on resource characters and life history, 
and promulgate the importance of con-
servation and sustainable utilization 
among the concerned stakeholders. Immedi-
ate enforcement of strict conservation 
strategies would probably be the only key 
to save this endemic species from further 
endangerment and possible extinction.  
 
 
1. Kottelat, M. and Whitten, T., World 
Bank Technical Paper, 1996, 343. 
2. Gopi, K. C., Endemic Fish Diversity of 
Western Ghats, National Bureau of Fish 
Genetic Resources, Lucknow, 2000.  
3. Gopalakrishnan, A. and Ponniah, A. G., 
Endemic Fish Diversity of Western 
Ghats, National Bureau of Fish Genetic 
Resources, Lucknow, 2000, pp. 13–32. 
4. Kurup, B. M. and Radhakrishnan, K. V., 
Fish. Chimes, 2006, 25, 111–122. 
5. Dahanukar, N., Raut, R. and Bhat, A., J. 
Biogeog., 2004, 31, 123–136. 
6. Anon., 21 April 2006; www.practical 
fishkeeping.co.uk/pfk/pages/show_article. 
php?article_id=137 
7. Sekharan, M. N. and Ramachandran, A., 
OFI J., 2006, 52, 20–21. 
8. Sudhi, K. S., The Hindu, Internet edition, 
18 February 2004; www.thehindu.com/ 
2004/12/25/stories/2004122504930500.htm 
9. Kurup, B. M. and Radhakrishnan, K. V., 
Souvenir – Ornamentals Kerala, 2006, 
pp. 37–57. 
10. Ramachandran, A., Riverine and Reser-
voir Fisheries of India, Central Institute 
of Fisheries Technology and Society of 
Fisheries Technologists, Kochi, 2002, 
pp. 109–135. 
11. Anon., 11 April 2006; http://www.aqua 
hobby.com/gallery/e_Puntius_denisonii.php 
12. Radhakrishnan, K. V. and Kurup, B. M., 
Abstr., Sustain Fish 2005, Kochi, 16–18 
March 2005. 
13. Mercy, T. V. A., Thomas, K. R. and Jacob, 
E., Indian J. Fish., 2002, 49, 209–210. 
14. Mercy, T. V. A., Souvenir – Ornamentals 
Kerala, 2006, pp. 71–75. 
15. Panes, H., Giles, B., Morgan, S., McCorry, 
D. and Vincent, A. C. J., Abstr., 7th 
Asian Fisheries Forum, Penang, Malay-
sia, 30 November–4 December 2004. 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS. We thank Robin 
Welcomme for useful comments on the draft 
manuscript; Mini Sekharan, School of Indus-
trial Fisheries, CUSAT, Kochi, and Benno 
Pereira, Department of Aquaculture, St. Albert’s 
College, Kochi, for sharing valuable informa-
tion on trade in native ornamental fishes from 
Kerala.  
 
 
 
Rajeev Raghavan* is in the Department 
of Aquaculture, St. Albert’s College, Kochi 
682 018, India and currently at the Insti-
tute of Hydrobiology of the Chinese 
Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China; G. 
Prasad and P. H. Anvar Ali are in the 
Department of Zoology, University of 
Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram 695 581, 
India; Lavanchawee Sujarittanonta is in 
the Institute for Sufficiency Economy  
Research and Promotion, Chiang Mai 
University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
 
*e-mail: rajeevraq@hotmail.com  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


'Boom and bust fishery' in a biodiversity hotspot - Is the Western Ghats losing its most celebrated native ornamental fish, Pantius denisond Day?

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'Boom and bust fishery' in a biodiversity hotspot - Is the Western Ghats losing its most celebrated native ornamental fish, Pantius denisond Day?

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Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy Of Sciences