| The present study deals with a collection of 53 species of fishes belonging to 31 genera, 9 orders under 17 families from Pallikaranai marsh. In July 2022, Pallikaranai Marsh Reserve Forest in Tamil Nadu was declared a Ramsar site. The IUCN status of the fishes recorded from the marsh was also provided. As per the IUCN status the fishes recorded from the marsh were belonging to the category LC (44), VU (2), EN (1), NT (2), NE (1) and DD (2). Some commercially important fishes such as the Trichogaster lalius (Hamilton, 1822), Trichogaster fasciata Bloch & Schneider, 1801, Trichogaster chuna (Hamilton, 1822), Pseudetroplus maculatus (Bloch, 1795), Etroplus suratensis (Bloch, 1795), Esomus danricus (Hamilton, 1822), Esomus thermoicos (Valenciennes, 1842), Rasbora daniconius (Hamilton, 1822), and different species of the genus Puntius which are used in the ornamental fishery is also recorded during the present study. The invasive alien species of fishes such as the Pterygoplichthys pardalis (Castelnau, 1855), Oreochromis aureus (Steindachner, 1864), Oreochromis mossambicus (Peters, 1852), Oreochromis niloticus (Linnaeus, 1758), Clarias gariepinus (Burchell, 1822), Gambusia affinis (Baird & Girard, 1853) are also recorded from the marsh. The species of fishes such as Anguilla bengalensis (Gray, 1831), Anguilla bicolor McClelland, 1844 and Trichogaster chuna (Hamilton, 1822) are the representative fishes which uses the wetland as a spawning ground. Channa orientalis Bloch & Schneider, 1801 is a vulnareble species which needs protection.
Keywords: Pallikaranai marsh, ornamental fishery, invasive alien species, commercially important.
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