Aquatic habitats in the Ayeyarwady Basin and their biodiversity

Abstract

This document provides a description of the general freshwater habitats found throughout the Ayeyarwady Basin. With a wide range of riverine and wetland habitats and high levels of species biodiversity, the Ayeyarwady River remains an ecologically important area and one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. However, the habitats of the Ayeyarwady River, from the mountain’s rivers in the Eastern Himalayas to the Outer Delta Islands, are increasingly being subjected to intense and growing pressure from habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, and over-exploitation of natural resources. Almost all of the wide ranges of riverine and wetland habitats illustrated in this report are under extreme pressures from human activities, ranging from deforestation, mining, and over-exploitation of natural resources. The level of pressure varies, but it is clear that the current form of protection is inadequate to address the major challenges of all wetland and riverine habitats. The protection of these habitats and its biodiversity can only be possible if there is close collaboration with the local communities and they are provided an alternative vision for their future.