The Living Planet Index (LPI) for migratory freshwater fishes 2024 update

The 2024 update of the Living Planet Index for migratory freshwater fishes reveals a catastrophic global decline of 81% in population abundance from 1970 to 2020. The report identifies habitat degradation, loss, and overexploitation as the primary drivers of these declines, with the most severe regional losses occurring in Latin America & Caribbean (-91%) and Europe (-75%). While managed populations declined less than unmanaged ones, the report highlights a mismatch between the prevalence of habitat-related threats and the dominance of fisheries-focused management.

• Globally, the abundance of monitored migratory freshwater fish populations declined by 81% between 1970 and 2020, an average annual decrease of 3.3%.
• The majority of monitored species (65%) showed an average decline, while 31% increased; most trends were characterized as either very positive or very negative.
• Regional declines varied significantly, with the most severe losses in Latin America & Caribbean (-91%) and Europe (-75%), and the smallest average decline in Asia-Oceania (-28%).
• Populations with documented local threats experienced a severe average decline of 96%, whereas populations with no recorded threats increased on average.
• Habitat degradation, alteration, and loss were the most prevalent threats, accounting for approximately 50% of all reported cases, followed by overexploitation at just under one-third.
• Managed populations declined less (-43%) than unmanaged populations (-88%), though managed populations are still overall in decline.
• There is a significant mismatch between the primary threats and management focus: while habitat issues are the leading threat, 42% of management activities relate to fisheries management, and only 9% relate to habitat management.
• Data for Africa is highly deficient, making it impossible to produce a reliable abundance trend for the region.
• In North America, the relatively smaller decline (-34%) may be due to 'shifting baselines,' where major population losses occurred prior to the 1970 baseline year.

APA

Deinet, S., Flint, R., Puleston, H., Baratech, A., Royte, J., Thieme, M. L., Nagy, S., Hogan, Z. S., Januchowski-Hartley, S. R., & Wanningen, H. (2024). The Living Planet Index (LPI) for migratory freshwater fishes 2024 update. WWF International. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/481/6f6b5o5dn1_LPI_migratory_freshwater_fishes_2024_Technical_report.pdf

Chicago

Deinet, Stefanie, Rachel Flint, Hannah Puleston, Adela Baratech, Joshua Royte, Michele L. Thieme, Szabolcs Nagy, et al. The Living Planet Index (LPI) for migratory freshwater fishes 2024 update. WWF International, 2024. https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/481/6f6b5o5dn1_LPI_migratory_freshwater_fishes_2024_Technical_report.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{deinet2024living, author = {Deinet, Stefanie and Flint, Rachel and Puleston, Hannah and Baratech, Adela and Royte, Joshua and Thieme, Michele L. and Nagy, Szabolcs and Hogan, Zeb S. and Januchowski-Hartley, Stephanie R. and Wanningen, Herman}, title = {{The Living Planet Index (LPI) for migratory freshwater fishes 2024 update}}, institution = {WWF International}, year = {2024}, month = may, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/documents/481/6f6b5o5dn1_LPI_migratory_freshwater_fishes_2024_Technical_report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }