animals

Wildlife
Past and Present

The Marshlands of Iraq have been greatly depleted. The loss of habitat has lead several species to the verge of extinction or extirpation. Very few of the large carnavors are still present in most areas of the Marshland.

Mammals
Mammals, such as the Smooth-Coated Otters, which once prowled the marches, are now thought to be extinct, while others such as the Indian Crested Porcupine, Bandicoot Rat, and Mesopotamian gerbil are being extirpated. The animals below are all species that once lived in the Marshlands of Iraq, all of these species are having population problems due to the server loss of habitat.

Smooth-Coated Otter Lutrogale perspicillata maxwelli	Indian Mongoose	Red Fox
Bandicoot Rat Erythronesokia bunnii	Wild Boar	Hedgehogs
Jackal	Honey Badger	Indian crested porcupine Hystrix indica
Goitred Gazelle	Mesopotamian gerbil Gerbillus mesopotamiae	Striped Hyena

Birds
An estimated 40 species of waterfowl are at risk. The Mesopotamian marshlands are among the most important wintering areas for migratory birds in Eurasia. A survey in 1979 revealed that the Marshlands of Iraq were internationally important wintering areas for at least 22 species of birds and possibly up to a total of 70 species of waterfowl. The marshlands support a number of globally threatened species on a seasonal basis.

African Darter Anhinga Rufa	Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus
Iraqi Babbler-endemic species	goliath heron Ardea goliath
Pygmy Cormorant Phalacrocorax pygmaeus	Dalmatian pelican Pelecanus crispus
Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca	Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris
White-Tailed Eagle Haliaeetus albicilla	Basra Reed Warbler-endemic species

Fish

The flow from the marshes provided nutrients to support fish-spawning grounds in the northern Gulf. Coastal fisheries in the northern Gulf, which depend on the marshlands for spawning grounds, have experienced a sharp decline. At the same time, the researchers reported increases in fish species introduced from other countries, some of those for aquaculture. Ecologists are now concerned now about the food pyramid for the fish, and the return of the native fisheries stock.

Barbus xanthopterus kattan	Carassius carassius- Introduced species
Hilsa Shad	Cyprinus Carpio

Other Fish Species
Barbus sharpeyi
Cyprinus sharpey binni
Liza abu khishni
Silurus triostegus jirri
Barbus luteus himri
Asalus eorase shilik

Aquaculture fishes- Many fish species have been introduced to the Marshlands as other species to supply the people of Iraq with an other food source such as Cyprinus carpio-common carp, Hypophthalmichthys molitrix-silver carp, & Ctenopharyngodon idellus-grass carp. They have had an unmeasured effect on native fish species and the rest of the ecosystem.

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