COMMON BARBEL

  • Scientifc name. Barbus plebejus Bonaparte, 1839
  • Annexes of Birds and Habits directives listing the area of occupancy of the species. The species is present in annexes II and V of Habitats directive; in this Annex it is indicated as Barbus spp.
  • Ecology and biology. The barbel is present in all watercourses running in the foothills and valley floors of Italy, in “rheophil ciprinidae” areas, where it often is the most abundant species. This species features a good ecological adaptability and can be found in several stretches of a watercourse – also small ones – provided they are oxygen-rich waters; however, the species prefers upper and middle courses of rivers featuring fast-flowing clear waters and gravel-beds. The body is spindle-shaped, with elongated head and can be quite long, even over 50 cm. Sexual maturity is reached between 2 or 3 years of age for males, and 4 and 5 years of age for females; there is no obvious sexual dimorphism. The breeding season is between mid-April and July. At 16 ° C hatching takes place after about 8 days.
  • Size of the population in the project area. In the Emilia Romagna Region, the Common Barbel is present in mountain , foothill and lowland streams. Historically in the Parma Province it was present (Nonnis Marzano et al, 2003) in the main stem of the Po river and its tributaries Stirone, Ceno, Taro, Baganza, Parma and Enza, with large populations in 11/28 areas of occupancy (39%). During the last years populations have remarkably declined. Official data available are those from the fish map referring to the period 2007-8 (Puzzi et al. 2010) where the species was listed as “vulnerable” at high risk of extinction in the medium term, despite the IUCN red list considers it a low risk species. Additional data currently available are those of the regional fish map listing censuses - mainly qualitative – done in the 1999-2004 period. The analysis of monitoring shows a wide variability of the presence of the Common Barbel within Sites of Community Importance and contiguous watercourses also on a limited geographical scale. For instance, in the Enza river the numerical population size of this species fluctuates between “rare” and “present” with poorly structured populations. More specifically, the density estimates show populations varying between 0,003 and 0,110 ind / sqm in the transition areas; in the lowland the presence becomes sporadic also due to the strong competition with the European barbels.
  • State of conservation in the project area: Despite the remarkable ability to adapt and the broad trophic spectrum that allow wide dissemination, its range has decreased. Populations feature a reduced number of specimens for the most part in the upper stretches of watercourses. A large population remains in the upper course of the Taro river with numerous specimens of considerable size; in the remaining stretch of the watercourses of the Apennines and hills of the Parma region, the remaining populations are poorly structured with fish whose sizes do not exceed 30 cm. In the lower course of the rivers and in the main stem of the Po river competition with non-native species has led to the disappearance of most populations. The situation of the Province of Parma is similar to that of the provinces of Piacenza and Reggio Emilia, where the few remaining populations are self-sustaining in the mountain courses while the species has virtually disappeared in the lowland. It is worth mentioning the barbel population present in the medium - upper course of the Trebbia river in the province of Piacenza.