Yangtze or Yangzi is the longest river in Eurasia, the third-longest in the world. It rises at Jari Hill in the Tanggula Mountains of the Tibetan Plateau and flows 6,300 km (3,915 mi) in a generally easterly direction to the East China Sea. It is the fifth-largest primary river by discharge volume in the world. Its drainage basin comprises one-fifth of the land area of China, and is home to nearly one-third of the country's population.
Dian Lake, also known as Dianchi, Lake Dian and Kunming Lake, is a fault lake located on the Puduhe-Xishan fault in Kunming, Yunnan, China at 24°23′–26°22′ N, 102°10′–103°40′ E. Its nickname is the "Sparkling Pearl Embedded in a Highland". It is the model for the Kunming Lake in Beijing's Summer Palace. Its name is the source of Yunnan's Chinese abbreviation 滇.
Salangidae, the icefishes or noodlefishes, are a family of small osmeriform fish, related to the smelts. They are found in Eastern Asia, ranging from the Russian Far East in the north to Vietnam in the south, with the highest species richness in China. Some species are widespread and common, but others have relatively small ranges and are threatened. Depending on species, they inhabit coastal marine, brackish or fresh water habitats, and some are anadromous, only visiting fresh water to spawn.
The New Zealand longfin eel, also known as ōrea, is a species of freshwater eel that is endemic to New Zealand. It is the largest freshwater eel in New Zealand and the only endemic species – the other eels found in New Zealand are the native shortfin eel, also found in Australia, and the naturally introduced Australian longfin eel. Longfin eels are long-lived, migrating to the Pacific Ocean near Tonga to breed at the end of their lives. They are good climbers as juveniles and so are found in streams and lakes a long way inland. An important traditional food source for Māori, who name them ōrea, longfin eel numbers are declining and they are classified as endangered, but over one hundred tonnes are still commercially fished each year.
Freshwater fish are fish species that spend some or all of their lives in bodies of fresh water such as rivers, lakes and inland wetlands, where the salinity is less than 1.05%. These environments differ from marine habitats in many ways, especially the difference in levels of osmolarity. To survive in fresh water, fish need a range of physiological adaptations.
The Chinese bahaba, also known as the giant yellow croaker, is a critically endangered species of marine and brackish water fish in the family Sciaenidae. It is a large fish, reaching lengths up to 2 m and weights of 100 kg (220 lb). It is found on the coast of China, from the Yangtze River estuary southwards to the Pearl River estuary, including the waters of Hong Kong and Macau. Its natural habitats are shallow seas, subtidal aquatic beds, rocky shores, and estuarine waters.
The ariakehimeshirauo, Neosalanx reganius, is a species of icefish in the family Salangidae endemic to Japan. It is only known from Midori and Chikugo Rivers in Kyushu. Its maximum total length is 63 mm (2.5 in), and has a lifespan of about one year. It seems to be relatively rare in its limited habitat, and is classified as an endangered species by IUCN.
Neosalanx is a genus of icefishes native to Eastern Asia, ranging from Korea, through Japan and China, to Vietnam. They inhabit coastal marine waters, estuaries and river basins. There are both species that are threatened and species that are widespread.
Cavefish or cave fish is a generic term for fresh and brackish water fish adapted to life in caves and other underground habitats. Related terms are subterranean fish, troglomorphic fish, troglobitic fish, stygobitic fish, phreatic fish, and hypogean fish.
The baiji is a possibly extinct species of freshwater dolphin native to the Yangtze river system in China. It is thought to be the first dolphin species driven to extinction due to the impact of humans. This dolphin is listed as “critically endangered: possibly extinct” by the IUCN, has not been seen in 40 years, and several surveys of the Yangtze have failed to find it. In China, the species is also called the Chinese river dolphin, Han river dolphin, Yangtze dolphin and whitefin dolphin. Nicknamed the "Goddess of the Yangtze", it was regarded as the goddess of protection by local fishermen and boatmen. It is not to be confused with the Chinese white dolphin or the finless porpoise. This is the only species in the genus Lipotes.
Fuxian Lake is a body of water in Yunnan Province, China. It stretches through Chengjiang, Jiangchuan and Huaning Counties, spanning an area of 212 square kilometers. It is the third-largest lake in Yunnan, after Dian Lake and Erhai Lake, and the deepest, at 155 meters. It is the third-deepest fresh water lake in China, after Tianchi and Kanas Lake.
Anabarilius alburnops is a species of ray-finned fish in the genus Alburnus. It is only known from Dian Lake and Songhuaba Reservoir, both in Kunming, Yunnan. It can reach sizes above 31 cm (12 in) SL.
The Kanglang fish is a species of cyprinid fish. It is a pelagic species endemic to Fuxian Lake in Yunnan, southern China. However, the species may now be in the process of extinction because of the introduced noodlefish Neosalanx taihuensis, with which it is competing for food.
Triplophysa orientalis is a species of stone loach. It is a freshwater fish from the Tibetan Plateau and is endemic to China; its distribution includes the upper reaches of the Yangtze and Yellow Rivers, among others. It lives in a wide range of habitats, both lentic and lotic. The species is widespread but populations tend to be isolated and show high degree of genetic divergence.
Aphia minuta, the transparent goby, is a species of the goby native to the northeastern Atlantic Ocean where it can be found from Trondheim, Norway to Morocco. It is also found in the Mediterranean, Black Sea and the Sea of Azov. It is a pelagic species, inhabiting inshore waters and estuaries. It can be found at depths of from the surface to 97 metres (318 ft), though it is usually found at 5 to 80 metres, over sandy and muddy bottoms and also in eelgrass beds. This species can reach a length of 7.9 centimetres (3.1 in) TL. It is an important species to local commercial fisheries. It is currently the only known member of its genus.
Hemisalanx brachyrostralis is a species of icefish endemic to the Yangtze basin, China. It is the only known species in the genus Hemisalanx, after Hemisalanx prognathus was moved to genus Salanx. In a study of the five freshwater icefish species in the Yangtze, it was a relatively low-density species, being much less frequent than Neosalanx taihuensis and N. oligodontis, but more than Protosalanx hyalocranius and N. tangkahkeii. H. brachyrostralis reaches up to 13.6 cm (5.4 in) in total length.
Protosalanx is a small genus of icefishes that are native to China, Korea and Vietnam where they primarily inhabit coastal waters and nearby fresh waters. They are commercially fished and used for aquaculture in China, where also introduced to some inland waters like Lake Dianchi. In addition to being eaten locally in Asia, they are exported to southern Europe as a replacement of the more expensive transparent goby, a Mediterranean species used in the local cuisine. This replacement is often done openly, but sometimes it is done fraudulently.
Coilia nasus, also known as ungeo and the Japanese grenadier anchovy or Chinese tapertail anchovy is a species of ray-finned fish from the family Engraulidae (anchovies). It grows to 41 cm (16 in) total length; it is a relatively large species for its genus. It is found in marine, freshwater, and brackish water at depths down to 50 m (160 ft). It is an example of an anadromous fish species, with some populations moving to freshwater to spawn. Overall they are distributed in the northwest Pacific, between 21–42°N and 109–134°E, or from Guangdong in China to the west coast of the Korean peninsula and the Ariake Sound in southwestern Japan. A traditional delicacy, the species is commercially fished in Korea, China and Japan. In China it is one of the most expensive fish sold, and as the anadromous variety is more expensive than the freshwater variety, the industry is mostly focussed in the Yellow Sea, East China Sea, and Yangtze.
Sinotaia quadrata is a species of a freshwater snail with a gill and an operculum, an aquatic gastropod mollusk in the family Viviparidae. It is widely distributed and common species in China and in northern Vietnam inhabiting various shallow freshwater habitats, where it can reach high densities. It is a keystone species in its habitat and can significantly affect water quality and phytoplankton communities. It is commonly used in Chinese cuisine.
The Yangtze finless porpoise is a species of toothed whale in the family Phocoenidae, the porpoise family. It is endemic to the Yangtze River in China, making it the country's only known freshwater cetacean following the possible extinction of the baiji, a freshwater dolphin also native to the Yangtze. The Yangtze finless porpoise is considered endangered and it is estimated that only about 1,000 remain. This small toothed whale faces many of the same threats as the baiji: High human activity on the Yangtze, such as illegal fishing, pollution, boat traffic, and dam construction. Due to the rapidly declining population of the species, the Chinese government and conservation charities are working to help save it from extinction.
