Specific Diversity of the Romanian Black Sea Fish Fauna

Abstract

The diversity of the Romanian Black fish fauna has undergone permanent changes, both qualitatively and quantitatively. These changes have occurred as a result of the deterioration of environmental conditions, but also due to inappropriate fisheries management. Some of these changes have had a major impact on both pelagic and benthic fish populations, affecting common and rare species, juveniles and adults, fish populations of commercial or non-commercial value, thus generating the disappearance of fish populations and, very rarely, the introduction of new species.

The quantitative analysis between 2016 and 2017 revealed the following: the dominant species in the samples analyzed from pound nets and beach seine were commercial species (sprat, anchovy, shads, horse mackerel etc.), followed in very small quantities (1 to 10 specimens) of non-commercial species.

Knowing and preserving the specific diversity of the Black Sea is a complex issue of concern. Over the last decades, due to pollution, eutrophication and unrealistic exploitation of bioresources, the total productivity of the marine ecosystem has greatly diminished, the Black Sea transforming from a rich and diverse ecosystem into a sea dominated by planktonic species reduced in number, incapable of bearing a rich fauna of large predators.