Forty Percent of Fish SpeciesAre Imperiled in North America, Study Says

A study by the American Fisheries Society says that 40 percent of fish species in North American lakes, rivers, and streams — including many species of salmon and trout — are endangered, threatened, or vulnerable to extinction. The 700 species at risk are double that of 20 years ago, when the last major assessment of North American fish species was completed. The study says that among the species in trouble are sunfishes, minnows, suckers, and catfishes. The regions with the largest number of species in jeopardy are the southeastern United States, the mid-Pacific coast, the Rio Grande valley, and numerous river basins in Mexico that do not flow into the sea. The study cited habitat loss, introduction of non-native species, and climate change as major threats to the continent’s fish species.