Capoeta damascina (Valenciennes, 1842)

Saad, Adib, Çiçek, Erdoğan, Esmaeili, Hamid Reza, Fricke, Ronald, Sungur, Sevil & Eagderi, Soheil, 2023, Freshwater fishes of Syria: a revised and updated annotated checklist- 2023, Zootaxa 5350 (1), pp. 1-62 : 20

Capoeta damascina (Valenciennes, 1842) [N]—Mesopotamian barb; Kallar abiad

Taxonomy. Original description: Gobio damascinus Valenciennes in Cuvier & Valenciennes, 1842: 314, pl. 482 [Damascus, Syria; lectotype: MNHN 0000-4494; lectotype selected by Krupp & Schneider (1989: 365)].— Syrian synonyms: Scaphiodon fratercula Heckel, 1843 ; Scaphiodon socialis Heckel, 1843 ; Scaphiodon peregrinorum Heckel, 1843 ; Capoeta syriaca (Valenciennes, 1844) ; Capoeta kosswigi Karaman 1969 .— Revisions: Alwan et al. (2016).—Illustration: Krupp & Schneider (1989: 366. fig. 17).

Status in Syria. Recorded from Syria in original description of Gobio damascinus by Valenciennes (1842: 314); subsequently reported by Gruvel (1931); Beckman (1962: 146) as Varicorhinus damascinus and Varicorhinus syriaca by Beckman (1962: 148).—Syrian material: MCZ, MNHN, SMNS, ZMUC, SMF.

Distribution and habitat. Distribution in Syria: Lake Al-ʿUtaybah drainage; Euphrates River drainage.— Distribution in River Basin: 1-Dajleh & Khabour, 2-Euphrates & Aleppo, 3-Desert, 4-Orontes, 5-Barada & Awaj, 6-Coastal, 7-Al-Yarmouk.—General distribution: Asia Minor and Middle East: Levant, Mesopotamia and south-eastern Anatolia ( Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Israel, and Jordan).—Distribution in Ecoregion: 436- Coastal Levant, 437-Orontes, 438- Jordan River, 440-Arabian Interior, 441-Lower Tigris & Euphrates, 442- Upper Tigris & Euphrates.—Habitat: This species inhabits a very wide range of all kinds of permanent waterbodies, at least seasonally, with gravel or running water. Freshwater.

Economic importance. Commercially important.

Conservation. Conservation status in Syria: Unknown.—IUCN: LC ( IUCN 2023).—Threats: ABS, CLI, CON, EUT, HAB.—Low sensitivity to human activities.—Not considered as a keystone species.—Decline status: Decreasing.—Low priority for conservation action.