Taxon name
Sparidentex hasta
(Valenciennes, 1830)
Uploaded by
National Red List Database
Taxonomic information
Scientific name
Sparidentex hasta
(Valenciennes, 1830)
Assessed taxon level
Species
Higher level taxonomic groupings
Vertebrates
Fishes
Species authority
(Valenciennes, 1830)
Location and scope
Specific locality or subnational name or regional name
United Arab Emirates (the)
Scope (of the Assessment)
National
Countries included within the scope of the assessment
United Arab Emirates (the)
Does the assessment cover a marine EEZ area(s)?
Not_assigned
Conservation Status
Assessed as
Data deficient
Criteria system used
IUCN
(see Assessment details)
Assessment rationale/justification
This coastal species occurs throughout UAE waters. It is taken in commercial fisheries in the UAE and surrounding areas of the Arabian Gulf and Sea of Oman. Landings in Abu Dhabi declined in the late 2000s, but updated data are needed to discern trends since 2011. Based on the uncertainty regarding the population trend of this exploited species, it is listed as Data Deficient. Studies are needed to estimate life history parameters (age at sexual maturity and longevity) to calculate generation length. Improvements in fisheries management is also needed.
Assessment details
Assessors/contributors/reviewers listed
UAE National Red List Workshop
Criteria system used
IUCN
Reference for methods given
IUCN. 2012. IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria: Version 3.1, Second edition. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. iv + 32pp pp. And IUCN. 2012. Guidelines for Application of IUCN Red List Criteria at Regional and National Levels: Version 4.0. Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK: IUCN. iii + 41pp.
Further information
Endemism (according to assessment)
Endemic to region
Not assigned
Taxon distribution as listed in assessment
This species occurs throughout UAE waters. Globally, it is restricted to the western Indian Ocean where it occurs from the Arabian Gulf to India (Bauchot and Smith 1984).
Is there a map available in assessment?
Yes
Habitat and systems
Ecological system type
Habitat
Habitat details as listed in assessment
This species occurs in shallow coastal waters to moderate depths over reefs and adjacent habitats, as well as estuaries and the lower reaches of rivers (Bauchot and Smith 1984, Randall 1995, Kamrani et al. 2016). It is a protandrous hermaphrodite. At one year of age, 90% of the population are male with running milt, while the other 10% are immature, but the age at which sex change occurs is not known (Kime et al. 1991). The maximum total length is 50 cm (Randall 1995).
Threats and conservation measures listed
Threats listed in assessment
Overfishing is a potential major threat to this species in the Arabian Gulf and Sea of Oman region, which includes the UAE. Corals in the UAE and Arabian Gulf have severely declined due to the increasing frequency of mass bleaching events caused by rising water temperatures, which is a consequence of climate change, as well as pervasive coastal development (Riegl et al. 2018, Burt et al. 2019).
Publication
Ralph, G.M., Stump, E., Linardich, C., Bullock, R.W., Carpenter, K.E., Allen D.J., Hilton-Taylor, C., Al Mheiri, R., and Alshamsi, O. 2021. UAE National Red List of Marine Species: Reef-building corals, cartilaginous fishes and select bony fishes. 2021. Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
