Acanthobrama tricolor
Overview
Acanthobrama tricolor, or the Damascus bream, is a species of freshwater fish in the family Leuciscidae. It is endemic to Syria and the Golan Heights, and is recently only known by two specimens found in the Masil al Fawwar river system in the late 1980s. It has been extirpated from the Barada river system, where it has not been seen since 1908.
It is considered Critically Endangered, and may possibly be extinct, but no studies of the river systems in the Golan Heights have been conducted, and it may still survive there, but the lower Barada is now dry, and the middle portions of the river are heavily polluted.
Acanthobrama tricolor faces severe population decline primarily due to water extraction and dam construction that has dramatically reduced water levels in its native Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee). The species is further threatened by water pollution from agricultural runoff and urban development around the lake basin. Introduced fish species compete for resources and may prey on juveniles, while the small population size makes the species vulnerable to stochastic events and genetic bottlenecks.
Habitat
Acanthobrama tricolor is endemic to Lake Tiberias (Sea of Galilee) in Israel, inhabiting the pelagic zone of this freshwater lake. The species prefers open water areas with moderate depths and historically thrived in the lake's naturally fluctuating water levels.
