The Dead Sea is a salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank to the west. It lies in the Jordan Rift Valley, and its main tributary is the Jordan River.
Galilee is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee and Lower Galilee.
The geography of Israel is very diverse, with desert conditions in the south, and snow-capped mountains in the north. Israel is located at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea in Western Asia. It is bounded to the north by Lebanon, the northeast by Syria, the east by Jordan and the West Bank, and to the southwest by Egypt. To the west of Israel is the Mediterranean Sea, which makes up the majority of Israel's 273 km (170 mi) coastline, and the Gaza Strip. Israel has a small coastline on the Red Sea in the south.
The Jordan River or River Jordan, also known as Nahr Al Sharieat, is a 251-kilometre-long (156 mi) river in the Middle East that flows roughly north to south through the Sea of Galilee and on to the Dead Sea. Jordan and the Golan Heights border the river to the east, while the West Bank and Israel lie to its west. Both Jordan and the West Bank take their names from the river.
The Sea of Galilee, also called Lake Tiberias, Kinneret or Kinnereth, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world, at levels between 215 metres (705 ft) and 209 metres (686 ft) below sea level. It is approximately 53 km (33 mi) in circumference, about 21 km (13 mi) long, and 13 km (8.1 mi) wide. Its area is 166.7 km2 (64.4 sq mi) at its fullest, and its maximum depth is approximately 43 metres (141 ft). The lake is fed partly by underground springs but its main source is the Jordan River, which flows through it from north to south and exits the lake at the Degania Dam.
Tilapia is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish from the coelotilapine, coptodonine, heterotilapine, oreochromine, pelmatolapiine, and tilapiine tribes, with the economically most important species placed in the Coptodonini and Oreochromini. Tilapia are mainly freshwater fish inhabiting shallow streams, ponds, rivers, and lakes, and less commonly found living in brackish water. Historically, they have been of major importance in artisanal fishing in Africa, and they are of increasing importance in aquaculture and aquaponics. Tilapia can become a problematic invasive species in new warm-water habitats such as Australia, whether deliberately or accidentally introduced, but generally not in temperate climates due to their inability to survive in cold water.
The red garra, also known as the doctor fish or nibble fish, is a species of cyprinid that is native to a wide range of freshwater habitats in subtropical parts of Western Asia. This small fish typically is up to about 14 cm (5.5 in) in total length, but locally individuals can reach as much as 24 cm (9.5 in).
Bethsaida, also known as Julias, is a place mentioned in the New Testament. Julias lay in an administrative district known as Gaulonitis. Historians have suggested that the name is also referenced in rabbinic literature under the epithet Ṣaidan.
The Hula Valley is an agricultural region in northern Israel with abundant fresh water, which used to be Lake Hula, prior to its draining. It is a major stopover for birds migrating along the Syrian-African Rift Valley between Africa, Europe, and Asia.
The wildlife of Israel includes the flora and fauna of Israel, which is extremely diverse due to the country's location between the temperate and the tropical zones, bordering the Mediterranean Sea in the west and the desert in the east. Species such as the Syrian brown bear and the Arabian ostrich have become extinct in Israel because of their loss of habitat. As of May 2007, 190 nature reserves have been established in Israel.
The wildlife of Jordan includes its flora and fauna and their natural habitats. Although much of the country is desert, it has several geographic regions, each with a diversity of plants and animals adapted to their own particular habitats. Fossil finds show that in Palaeolithic times, the region had Syrian brown bears, Asiatic lions, zebras, Asian elephants, and rhinoceroses, but these species are all now extinct in this region.
Acanthobrama lissneri, or the Jordan bream, is a species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is found in Israel and Jordan. Its natural habitats are rivers and lakes, and is now commonly found in reservoirs.
Acanthobrama terraesanctae, the Kinneret bream or Kinneret bleak, is a species of freshwater fish in the family Cyprinidae. It is known from two lakes: Lake Tiberias, Israel, and Lake Muzarib, Syria. This is a small planktivorous fish, typically about 14 cm long, occurring near surface in large schools. It is very abundant in Lake Tiberias, whereas there is little information on the other lake, which is small (0.5 km2) and can hold a small population anyway.
Astatotilapia flaviijosephi, the Jordan mouthbrooder, is a vulnerable species of freshwater fish in the family Cichlidae (cichlids). It is found in the central Jordan River system, including Lake Tiberias (Kinneret), in Israel, Jordan and Syria, making it the only haplochromine cichlid to naturally range outside of Africa. This species is too small to be of significant importance to fisheries, unlike the only other cichlids native to the Levant, the economically important tilapias.
Tristramella intermedia is an extinct species of fish in the family Cichlidae. It was endemic to Lake Hula in northern Israel. This taxon was considered to be a subspecies of T. simonis in FishBase and considered a synonym of T. simonis by Catalog of Fishes, a view with which FishBase now concurs. This species reached a length of 22.9 centimetres (9.0 in) TL.
Tristramella is a genus of oreochromines, freshwater fishes in the cichlid family. The members of this genus prefer standing waters and their native range is restricted to the Jordan River system, including Lake Tiberias (Kinneret), in Israel and Syria, with introduced populations in a few other places in Syria. Its members are among the few cichlids native to Western Asia, the others being Astatotilapia flaviijosephi, Coptodon zillii, Iranocichla, Oreochromis aureus, O. niloticus and Sarotherodon galilaeus.
Tristramella simonis, the short jaw tristramella, is a vulnerable species of cichlid fish from the Jordan River system, including Lake Tiberias (Kinneret), in Israel and Syria, with introduced populations in the Nahr al-Kabir and Orontes basins in Syria. It prefers waters with little or no movement. Along with other tilapias, T. simonis is commonly caught as a food fish in parts of its range and it is commercially important in Lake Tiberias.
The blue tilapia is a species of tilapia, a fish in the family Cichlidae. Native to Northern and Western Africa, and the Middle East, through introductions it is now also established elsewhere, including parts of the United States, where it has been declared an invasive species and has caused significant environmental damage. It is known as the blue kurper in South Africa.
The mango tilapia is a species of fish from the cichlid family that is native to fresh and brackish waters in Africa and the Levant. Other common names include Galilaea tilapia, Galilean comb, Galilee St. Peter's fish, and St. Peter's fish.. This is a relatively large cichlid at up to 41 centimetres (16 in) in total length and about 1.6 kilograms (3.5 lb) in weight. It is very important to local fisheries and the species is also aquacultured.
Fishing in Israel is a branch of the Israeli economy with historical significance. The three main natural fishing zones are the Mediterranean Sea, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Kinneret. A fourth area that was once historically significant, Lake Hula, no longer exists, as it was drained in the 1950s. In addition, aquaculture the growth of fish in ponds or in cages, is rising in prominence.
