Distribution, abundance and status of Botia dario in the ornamental fish market, Bangladesh
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Abstract
This research was carried out to determine the abundance, distribution, and marketing channels of Botia dario in several areas of Bangladesh through a questionnaire survey. Survey information was collected from fishermen, aratdars, farias, retailers, consumers, wholesalers, and aquarium fish keepers. The quantity of B. dario collected from the four districts of Mymensingh, Kishoregonj, Sunamgonj, and Sylhet was analyzed to estimate the abundance of this species.
Botia dario was found in considerably larger quantities at Dekhar Haor in South Sunamgonj and in the Brahmaputra River in Mymensingh compared to other locations. This species started to appear in local markets in August, became more common from September to October, and became scarce after November.
In the marketing channel, fishermen directly sold B. dario to consumers (22.6%), retailers (19%), aratdars (50%), and wholesalers in ornamental fish markets (5%), while a small portion (3.4%) was consumed by the fishermen themselves. Two species of Botia were available in the central ornamental fish market at Katabon, Dhaka. Among shopkeepers in this market, 2% stocked B. dario and 16% stocked B. lohachata. On average, each shopkeeper sold about 30 live B. dario per month in the ornamental fish market, with an average price of 40 BDT per pair. The price of dead B. dario in food fish markets ranged from 450 to 700 BDT per kg. Lower prices for live B. dario were observed in Sunamganj fish markets compared to other markets.
In the ornamental fish market, 57% of shopkeepers reported medium demand and 43% reported low demand. In contrast, in the edible fish market, 35% of respondents reported strong demand, while 65% reported medium demand. Due to its significant potential in the fisheries sector and demand in both ornamental and edible fish markets, conservation and culture of this species are essential to prevent its extinction.
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