A unique little fish lives in the fresh waters of Rhodes and manages to survive despite the adversities that exist.

It’s about the fish”weed“, the existence of which has been known for several decades to the inhabitants of the island and to the scientific community, which lives in streams and on Lakes Island’s. It is also noteworthy that it has not been identified on any other island of the Dodecanese.

Its populations were recorded in the streams of Loutani, Gadoura and Argyrou, in the area of ​​Psinthos (Pelemonis system), in an artificial reservoir in Agia Eleusa, in the area of ​​Asklipieio (stream of Kontari), as well as in the streams and the artificial lake of Apolakkia and in the dam-lake of Gadouras.

It is a unique species that belongs to the protected species by Greek and European legislation.

It has been characterized as a “champion” of survival although in previous decades its population was larger.

The small fish with the common name “gizani”, is an endemic species of Rhodes that does not surpass them 10-12 cm in full length. Its scientific name is Squaliusghigii (Pisces, Leuciscidae – previous scientific name Ladigesocyprisghigii) and it got the common, but also the second synthetic of its scientific name, from the Italian professor Alessandro Ghigi who first discovered it on the island during scientific research, in 1923 .

It is also known by its second common name “Minia“, which probably comes from the Italian word “miniatura”.

“Little Champion of Survival”

In response to a question from APE-MPE to Gerasimos Kondylatos, ichthyologist (TE) at the Rhodes Hydrobiological Station of the Hellenic Center for Marine Research, regarding how this little fish manages to survive for so many years, he answered us that:

“The gizani is characterized as a small champion of survival, because it manages to live in the extremely unstable environment of the island’s streams, which can flood in the winter, while in the summer most of them dry up.

Its main enemy is the drought mainly during the summer months, which is aggravated by the simultaneous uncontrolled pumping of water for irrigation and water purposes, due to the rapid increase in tourism. It is also at risk from the degradation of the water quality in which it lives due to pollution of streams and reservoirs with urban and rural sewage, from the dangerous introduction of non-native fish species into aquatic systems (e.g. butterflies, carp), as well as from reducing the genetic diversity of the species.

However, to cope with these adverse and unstable conditions it has developed various ways of adaptability that make it extremely durable. It withstands both low winter water temperatures (~10 ° C) and high summer water temperatures (~30 ° C). Remarkable is the fact that females spawn part-time (that is, she lays eggs more than once), thus increasing the probability of survival of his offspring, resulting in a large number of fish spawning in total during the spawning season. This period starts from the spring and often reaches the autumn, depending on the climatic conditions. It has a short life cycle (it usually lives up to three years) and becomes reproductively ready by the end of its first year of life. It prefers water with little flow and tends to hide among vegetation, plant roots and stones. In addition, as far as its diet is concerned, it is omnivorous and feeds on whatever is available, algae, aquatic plants, invertebrates and insect larvae.”

As mentioned by Mr. Kondylatos, in APE-MBE, the gizani is considered one of the most endangered freshwater fish species in Europe, given that in recent years one of its populations has already disappeared (in the lake of Nanos), while those that remain show trends of continuous restriction. Besides, the Italian professor Ghigi collected the first samples from the Myloni stream, in Koskinou, a stream that no longer exists.

It is included in Annex II of the Community Directive for the Protection of Habitats (92/43/EEC), as a priority species, as well as in the Red Book of Threatened Species of Greece, while it is protected by the Greek Legislation with the P.D. 67/1981.

As Mr. Kondylatos emphasizes in APE-MPE, the gizani lives exclusively in Rhodes since the island was separated from the coast of Asia Minor. However, a recent study mentions its existence in internal waters of Attica, in the Megalo Rema Rafina. Its presence there is a product of human liberation, so it becomes a “foreign” species for its new area.

With the support of the European Union, the Hellenic Center for Marine Research with the Hydrobiological Station of Rhodes, the Institute of Marine Biological Resources and Inland Waters and the Institute of Oceanography, in collaboration with the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki as well as local and national agencies, is engaged here and many years with the issue of the protection of the gizzard, combining the systematic monitoring of the state of its populations and the quality of the wetlands where it lives with the realization of protection and demonstration projects as well as with educational and informational activities.