Pelecus cultratus ( Linnaeus, 1758 )

Çiçek, Erdoğan, Fricke, Ronald, Eagderi, Soheil, Sungur, Sevil, Coad, Brian W & Hamdard, Mohammad Hamid, 2023, Fishes of Afghanistan; a revised and updated annotated checklist, Zootaxa 5305 (1), pp. 1-69 : 36

Pelecus cultratus ( Linnaeus, 1758)

[N]—Sichel

Taxonomy. Original description: Cyprinus cultratus Linnaeus, 1758: 326 [Helgeån River; holotype: ZMUU Linn. Coll. 224 (poor condition)].— Afghanistan synonyms: Pelecus cultratus kurensis Smirnov, 1943 ; Clupea ziga Wulff, 1765 .—Revisions: Berg (1949: 810).—Illustration: Berg (1949: 811, figs. 554–555).

Status in Afghanistan. First record from Afghanistan by Berg (1949: 813); confirmed by Coad (1981: 11; 2015: 190; 2015: 228).—Afghanistan materials: None.

Distribution and habitat. Distribution in Afghanistan: Panj River.—General distribution: Eurasia.—Habitat: This species inhabits the open waters of large rivers and lakes. Semi-anadromous individuals forage and spawn in pelagic environments. Freshwater, brackish.

Economic importance. Locally commercially important.

Conservation. Conservation status in Afghanistan: Unknown.—IUCN: LC ( Freyhof & Kottelat 2008e).—Threats: No major threats known.—Low sensitivity to human activities.—Not considered as a keystone species.— Decline status: Unknown.—Moderate priority for conservation action.