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Abstract

Freshwater ecosystems support a remarkable proportion of global biodiversity and offer crucial ecological services and economic value to society. Despite their importance, these water bodies are some of the most threatened on Earth and exhibit great vulnerability to the effects of anthropological-mediated threats including introduction of exotic species. At least 37,000 exotic species have been introduced by human activities beyond their natural range to all regions and biomes of Earth, including remote and isolated environments, and many of them have become established. Freshwater environments harbor approximately 18,915 fish species, accounting for a quarter of all vertebrate biodiversity. However, these species are experiencing declines at rates surpassing those observed in other ecosystems. Among the key drivers of this decline, biological invasions have become increasingly significant. Globally, more than 500 exotic freshwater fish species have established populations after their introduction, making them one of the most frequently introduced taxonomic groups, with significant ecological impacts such as competition with native species, habitat alteration, and the spread of diseases The United States records the highest non-native fish diversity (302 species), followed by Canada (63), Brazil (60), Russia (58), Mexico (56), and China (53). Iran, with 33 alien fish species, comprises 58.9% of the freshwater alien fish species of the Middle East, and this count positions Iran among the countries facing moderate to high biological invasion pressure in its freshwater systems, though fewer than global hotspots like the United States. The fish invasion has contributed to the biotic homogenization of freshwater fish assemblages with profound ecological, health and socio-economic consequences. The present study aims to review endemic and alien cichlids of Iran, providing current taxonomic status, distribution, morphological characteristics, identification key, introduction pathways of alien cichlids, their impacts on native fishes, and documenting first and new locality records of Oreochromis mossambicus and O. niloticus and their hybrids in the Minab River drainage (Makran basin, Hormuzgan). Understanding the distribution patterns of exotic fish species and the factors driving their establishment in specific regions are critical for developing effective management strategies and predicting future invasion risks. This is particularly important in biodiversity-rich countries such as Iran.

Keywords

Global biodiversity Alien species Alien and invasive species Anthropological-mediated threats Inland freshwater fish

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The authors transfer the copyrights of their papers to the Iranian Society of Ichthyology. However, the information could be used in accordance with the Creative Commons licence (Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)

How to Cite
ESMAEILI, H. R., HASHEMI, S. H., ECHRESHAVI, S., MASOUMI, A. H., & POURHOSSEINI, F. (2025). Invasive vs. endemic cichlid species: A review of Iranian cichlids with new locality records for <i>Oreochromis niloticus</i> and <i>O. mossambicus</i> (Actinopterygii: Cichlidae). Iranian Journal of Ichthyology, 12(3), 172–216. https://doi.org/10.22034/iji.v12i3.1075
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