⚠️ Unconfirmedenvironmental2023

Share of freshwater fish species threatened with extinction (IUCN Red List)

Percent of assessed freshwater fish species that are threatened with extinction (Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable) in each country.

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Key Insights

Global Average
19.9%
Median: 18.9%
Countries Covered
168
with available data
Highest
Burundi
44.1%
Lowest
Iceland
0.0%
Top 5 Countries
1Burundi44.1%
2Democratic Republic of the Congo42.7%
3Solomon Islands41.5%
4Eritrea40.2%
5Republic of the Congo39.6%
By Region
Africa25.5%(9 countries)
Other23.6%(90 countries)
Asia20.7%(24 countries)
South America19.6%(7 countries)
Oceania14.3%(2 countries)
Key Findings
  • Freshwater fish threat levels are often highest in regions facing rapid water infrastructure expansion, pollution, and habitat conversion.
  • Small island states may show extreme percentages due to small species lists and endemism.
  • Even countries with strong environmental regulation can have notable threatened shares where rivers are heavily modified or fragmented.
  • Comparisons are most meaningful across countries with similar assessment coverage and freshwater fish diversity.

Country Rankings

Top 10 Countries

Bottom 10 Countries

Data Analysis

Value Distribution

How countries are distributed across the value range

Low (0.0%)High (100.0%)

Regional Comparison

Average values by world region (Global avg: 19.9%)

Africa (9)
Other (90)
Asia (24)
South America (7)
Oceania (2)
North America (4)
Europe (32)

About This Statistic

This statistic shows the share of assessed freshwater fish species in a country that are classified as Threatened on the IUCN Red List (Critically Endangered, Endangered, or Vulnerable). It highlights how pressures such as habitat fragmentation (dams), water pollution, invasive species, overfishing, and water abstraction are affecting freshwater biodiversity—often one of the most imperiled and least visible parts of nature.

Values are derived from IUCN’s Red List spatial and assessment data by counting freshwater-dependent fish species whose ranges overlap a country and calculating the percentage that are listed as threatened. Because knowledge and assessment coverage vary across taxa and regions, this metric is best interpreted as a comparable indicator of biodiversity risk rather than an absolute census of all species present.

Full Data

Rank Country Value
1Burundi44.1%
2Democratic Republic of the Congo42.7%
3Solomon Islands41.5%
4Eritrea40.2%
5Republic of the Congo39.6%
6Myanmar38.8%
7Bangladesh37.2%
8Nepal36.9%
9Ethiopia36.5%
10Cambodia36.0%
11Somalia35.7%
12Sri Lanka35.4%
13Gabon35.1%
14Angola34.9%
15Zambia34.6%
16India34.2%
17Rwanda34.0%
18Sudan33.9%
19Equatorial Guinea33.8%
20Malawi33.7%
21Cameroon33.3%
22Indonesia33.0%
23Uganda32.9%
24Kenya32.6%
25Afghanistan32.1%
26Lao People's Democratic Republic31.9%
27Armenia31.4%
28United Republic of Tanzania31.2%
29Liberia31.0%
30Chad30.7%
31Republic of The Gambia30.4%
32Yemen30.2%
33Mozambique30.1%
34Bolivia29.9%
35Niger29.6%
36Zimbabwe29.3%
37Central African Republic29.2%
38Thailand29.1%
39Guinea29.0%
40Guinea-Bissau28.8%
41Cote d'Ivoire28.7%
42Djibouti28.6%
43Albania28.4%
44Burkina Faso28.3%
45Nigeria28.1%
46People's Republic of China28.0%
47Benin27.9%
48Togo27.7%
49Austria27.6%
50Senegal27.4%
51Madagascar27.2%
52Sierra Leone26.9%
53Brazil26.8%
54Vietnam26.5%
55Ghana26.1%
56Pakistan25.8%
57Bhutan25.7%
58Mali25.5%
59Guyana25.0%
60Mauritania24.9%
61Lesotho24.7%
62Peru24.6%
63Malaysia24.3%
64Belize24.0%
65Philippines23.8%
66Colombia23.6%
67Botswana23.1%
68Timor-Leste22.7%
69Australia22.5%
70Venezuela22.4%
71Ecuador22.1%
72Tajikistan22.0%
73Eswatini21.9%
74Algeria21.7%
75Islamic Republic of Iran21.4%
76Panama21.2%
77Brunei Darussalam20.9%
78Mexico20.6%
79Haiti20.1%
80Iraq19.9%
81Bulgaria19.7%
82New Caledonia19.6%
83Dominican Republic19.3%
84Honduras18.9%
85Cuba18.8%
86Nicaragua18.7%
87Mauritius18.5%
88Bahrain18.3%
89Uzbekistan18.2%
90Namibia18.1%
91El Salvador18.0%
92Papua New Guinea17.8%
93Cape Verde17.5%
94Kazakhstan17.3%
95Guatemala17.1%
96Argentina16.8%
97South Africa16.7%
98Morocco16.5%
99Egypt16.4%
100Costa Rica16.2%
101Paraguay16.0%
102Vanuatu15.9%
103Kyrgyzstan15.4%
104Comoros15.1%
105Jamaica14.8%
106Türkiye14.6%
107Barbados14.2%
108Libya14.0%
109Bosnia and Herzegovina13.6%
110North Korea13.2%
111Georgia12.9%
112Mongolia12.8%
113Fiji12.6%
114Suriname12.4%
115Chile12.3%
116Jordan12.1%
117Cyprus11.7%
118Lebanon11.3%
119Maldives11.0%
120Japan10.9%
121Uruguay10.8%
122France10.7%
123Trinidad and Tobago10.6%
124Belgium10.4%
125Tunisia10.3%
126United States of America10.2%
127Moldova, Republic of10.1%
128Bahamas9.8%
129Israel9.7%
130Portugal9.6%
131Greece9.5%
132South Korea9.4%
133Spain9.3%
134Russian Federation9.2%
135Croatia9.1%
136Montenegro9.0%
137Canada8.9%
138Kuwait8.8%
139Serbia8.7%
140Hungary8.6%
141Ukraine8.5%
142The Republic of North Macedonia8.4%
143Czech Republic8.3%
144Romania8.2%
145Italy8.1%
146Slovenia7.9%
147Germany7.8%
148Poland7.7%
149Latvia7.5%
150Lithuania7.4%
151Slovakia7.3%
152Estonia7.2%
153Oman7.0%
154Finland6.9%
155Ireland6.8%
156United Kingdom6.7%
157Netherlands6.6%
158Saudi Arabia6.5%
159Denmark6.4%
160Luxembourg6.2%
161New Zealand6.1%
162Switzerland6.0%
163United Arab Emirates5.9%
164Western Sahara5.5%
165Norway5.2%
166Singapore4.8%
167Sweden4.6%
168Iceland0.0%
Showing 168 of 168 countries

Topics

Data Source

This data comes from International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species (2023).

View Original Source