Alburnus caeruleus Heckel, 1843 [N]—Black Spotted Bleak; Daffaf

Taxonomy. Original description: Alburnus caeruleus Heckel, 1843a: 1084 (94) [Aleppo, Syria; syntypes: NMW 16688 (4), 55511-13 (2, 2, 2), 57161 (3);?RMNH 2656 (4); SMF 100 (4)].—Syrian synonyms: Alburnoides recepi Turan, Kaya, Ekmekçi & Doğan, 2014 .—Revisions: None.—Illustration: Heckel (1843b: pl. 11, fig. 3).

Status in Syria. Recorded from Syria in original description by Heckel (1843a: 1085); subsequently reported by Gruvel (1931); Beckman (1962: 87); Ali (2003); Taha (2005).—Syrian material: BMNH, NMW, MSL.

Distribution and habitat. Distribution in Syria: Tigris, Euphrates and Qweik River drainages.—Distribution in River Basin: 1-Dajleh & Khabour, 2-Euphrates & Aleppo.—General distribution: Asia Minor and Middle East: Tigris, Euphrates and Qweik River drainages (Turkey, Syria, Iraq, and Iran).—Distribution in Ecoregion: 441-Lower Tigris & Euphrates, 442-Upper Tigris & Euphrates.—Habitat: This species is found in streams, rivers, and lakes with moderate to slow currents. Also inhabits reservoirs. Freshwater.

Economic importance. No commercial importance.

Conservation. Conservation status in Syria: Unknown.—IUCN: LC (IUCN 2023).—Threats: There are many threats in the area inhabited by this species, but none is so strong to considerably impact the global population of this fish.—Low sensitivity to human activities.—Keystone species.—Decline status: Stable.—Low priority for conservation action.