Work

Annotated checklist of the marine ichthyofauna of Mauritania from shallow-water habitats and artisanal fish markets

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Due to their location in a strong upwelling area, Mauritanian waters are one of the most nutrient‑rich and productive areas in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. On the Mauritanian coast, a remarkably high biodiversity consisting of tropical, subtropical, and temperate species with overlapping distributions can be found. This study reports 104 fish species from 53 different families from this area. Overall, the findings indicate Mauritanian waters as a coastal area with high biodiversity and occurrences of several critically endangered elasmobranch species such as Sphyrna lewini (Griffith & Smith, 1834) and Glaucostegus cemiculus (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817). Moreover, this survey indicated an urgent need for updates concerning the IUCN Red List classification of several Mauritanian species, which serve as an essential income source for artisanal fishermen in Mauritania.

Source: Check List

DOI: 10.15560/21.1.148

Authors: Alexander Hans Knorrn, Sidi Mohamed M. Moctar, Moritz Sonnewald, Mamadou Dia, Alioune Niang, André Freiwald

Institutions: University of Bremen, Senckenberg am Meer, Institut Mauritanien de Recherches Océanographiques et des Pêches, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt/M

Language: English

Topic: Ichthyology and Marine Biology

Subfield: Nature and Landscape Conservation

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Life below water

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $161