Bienvenido Sociedad de Estudios Ictiológicos!

The Sociedad de Estudios Ictiológicos (Society of Ichthyological Studies) was founded by a small group of Spanish aquarists in 2005 with the primary aims of encouraging interest in the keeping and breeding of freshwater fishes within Spain as well as the conservation and study of rare species. It is a non-profitable organisation, an official advisor to the Fish and Aquatic Invertebrates Taxonomic Advisory Group (a division of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria) and has collaborated on projects with various zoological institutions, museums and hobbyist associations.

Much of the work undertaken by the society to date has involved species of the Order Cyprinodontiformes with a particular focus on the genus Aphanius, of which Spain boasts two (highly endangered) native species. In July I was lucky enough to visit members of the group in the city of Zaragoza where I saw their breeding facilities and was hugely impressed by their passion and knowledge for both these fish and the hobby in general.

Aphanius are a genus of killifish that are largely overlooked in the hobby although it's difficult to understand why as they are beautiful to look at, easy to keep and not too difficult to breed. The S.E.I. currently maintains 16 species and subspecies among their members along with numerous other rare Cyprinodontids such as Cualac tesselatus and Cyprinodon alvarezi.

Through collaboration and exchanges with zoos, public aquaria and hobbyists the group aims to maintain captive-bred populations of these fish over the long term and in the case of the species that are rare in nature assist in conservation programmes when possible.

Of particular interest are Aphanius baeticus  and A. iberus . These species are native to Spain but are on the verge of being wiped out due to habitat loss and the introduction of highly competitive alien species such as Gambusia. Having personally visited wild populations of both species I can say that the prospects do not look good for either and that the "official" protection programmes seem to be woefully inadequate. Look out for an upcoming article on the hardships facing Spanish Aphanius here on SF. We're also getting involved in the breeding programme and recently received groups of juvenile Aphanius mento  "Kirgoz" and Cualac tesselatus which we hope to spawn next year.

In the meantime please visit the S.E.I.'s community page where you'll find links to their various websites (including two in English) plus a full colour downloadable poster.

Finally I'd like to personally thank S.E.I. members Manuel Zapater, Juan Pablo Campofort and Roberto Sáez for their kindness, assistance and good humour over the last few months. It has been a great pleasure getting to know you all and I am very much looking forward to our next meeting!