Fish Biodiversity Assessment of Tawarja Reservoir, Latur (Maharashtra): A Case Study

The present study deals with the ichthyofaunal diversity of Tawarja reservoir, Latur, Maharashtra. Tawarja reservoir is a perennial water body used for human and livestock consumption in nearby areas. This reservoir's primary purpose is irrigation, and it is also used for culture-based capture fisheries by the fisherman community of Latur taluka. Tawarja reservoir is allocated to Mahadev Koli Samaj Matsyavawsay Cooperative Society Ltd., Kava of Latur taluka. The present study observed that the ichthyofauna belongs to 05 orders, 09 families, 19 genera and 31 species. Cyprinidae family was reported dominant with 17 species (54.83%) followed by Bagridae & Siluridae 3 species with 9.67 % contribution, Channidae with 02 species (6.45%), and the families of Notopteridae, Botiidae, Clariidae, Heteropneustidae, Pangasidae and Mastacembelidae contributing 01 species (3.22%) of each. Regarding their conservation status, 25 species were of least concern, 2 were vulnerable, 3 were near threatened, and 1 was in an endangered stage. (IUCN-2023).