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SHOAL Wrapped is where freshwater fans get a deep dive into our most memorable moments of the year.
We took an incredible trip to India’s Western Ghats
In February we went to Kerala to meet project partners and visit project sites. It was a phenomenal experience to see some of the Western Ghats’ incredible aquatic diversity with our own eyes.
Here’s a handful of what we got up to on the trip:
- Caught up with our amazing partners at Zoo Outreach and Kerala University of Fisheries and Ocean Studies
- Met Mr Abraham, who famously discovered the Pathala Eel Loach in his shower!
- Visited sites where subterranean fishes have been found
- Explored the mighty Periyar River, where we catalogued 15 species – and found wild Denison’s Barbs!
We released our fourth New Species report
A killifish discovered right next to a tourist path, the piranha’s vegetarian cousin, and a bizarre worm-like fish that doesn’t live in water…but MUD!
On World Wildlife Day in March we released our fourth annual New Species report, detailing the 260 freshwater fish species described in 2024.
In this year’s edition there are more new species than ever before! It’s a timely reminder that there’s still plenty of biodiversity on our planet yet to be discovered.
“New species discoveries shine a small but optimistic light: an indication that our embattled Earth yet harbours wonder and discovery, and a bracing reminder of the continued need to explore, observe, and protect the priceless biodiversity that sustain us all.”
– Dr Chouly Ou, US Coordinator, SHOAL and Dr. Nathaniel NG, Southeast Asia Coordinator, SHOAL / IUCN SSC ASAP
Contributions from researchers and taxonomists who work hard to discover and describe new species make the landmark report possible. We’re now looking forward to New Species 2025, and we want to hear from you again. If you have come across a species this year you think should be included, get in touch.
We were the (webinar) hosts with the mosts
We made a splash with our programme of free freshwater conservation webinars, kicking off in April with our New Species webinar, which brought together four of the brilliant researchers involved in discovering and describing some of our most intriguing new species – thanks Jairo, Felipe, Valeria and Rupert!
“These webinars have been a really fun way to learn more about the wonderful work people are doing globally for freshwaters. Thank you to all those who we’ve featured, and to everybody who has tuned in. If you have a freshwater story that you’d like to share, get in touch – we’d love to hear about it and hopefully feature it in a webinar in 2026!”
– Michael Edmondstone, Communications and Engagement Lead, SHOAL
We went on to host fascinating conversations on topics from conserving the incredible endemic fauna of India’s mighty Western Ghats to killifish conservation work in the Mediterranean Basin, and many more!
We had our very first all partners meeting
Freshwater avengers assemble!
In June we gathered more than 60 of SHOAL’s partners for the first of an annual series of all partner conversations.
The all partners meeting was an opportunity to celebrate the successes of the wider SHOAL, share future plans, and listen to experts talk about all the fantastic freshwater conservation work they’re doing around the world.
“This was the first time we brought the whole wider SHOAL of partners together at the same time, to share how far the organisation has come since we started in 2019, to celebrate our wins, and to plan together how we can elevate and amplify our collaborative work over the coming year and beyond. It was fantastic to see everybody’s faces, even if only on a screen and not, as we’d prefer, in person! We look forward to hosting this all partners meet every year.”
– Mike Baltzer, Executive Director, SHOAL
Highlights include Eresha Fernando‘s (IUCN Centre for Science and Knowledge), presentation on the results of the 2025 Nature paper One-quarter of freshwater fauna threatened with extinction, the facilitated group discussion with a guest panel on How can we build and strengthen the SHOAL, and of course just seeing everyone’s beautiful faces in one place!
Watch this space – in 2026, the all partners meeting will return.
We went to the 1st International Conference on the Cultural Significance of Fish
In June, SHOAL’s Georgie Bull attended the Institute of Fisheries Management’s 1st Cultural Significance of Fish Conference, in Ely, UK. The event powerfully underscored the deep cultural connections between people and fishes across the globe.
“It was encouraging to see the incredible work being done to better define and quantify cultural significance in ways that respect local knowledge and lived experience. What struck me most, though, was the deep humanity in the talks: the personal stories, emotional resonance, and clear passion behind each project or anecdote presented. The conference has created a strong sense of momentum for recognising and protecting these connections as a vital part of conservation.”
– Georgie Bull, Programme Officer, SHOAL
We collaborated on WWF’s flagship Africa’s Forgotten Fishes report
In July the WWF published the major new report ‘Africa’s Forgotten Fishes…And The Emergency Recovery Plan To Save Them’.
“Africa is a global hotspot of freshwater fish diversity, home to over 3,200 species, but it’s also a hotspot of risk. When these fish disappear, we lose much more than species: we lose food & nutrition security, livelihoods, ecosystem balance, and adaptive capacities to climate change. These declines are a red flag for the broader health of Africa’s freshwater ecosystems, which are the very life support systems for people and nature.”
– Eric Oyare, Freshwater Lead, WWF Africa
We were thrilled to collaborate with the WWF on this landmark report, which sounds the alarm for Africa’s freshwater fishes and their ecosystems, and join its call for urgent, coordinated action.
We launched The SHOAL Alliance of Zoos and Aquaria
The SHOAL Alliance of Zoos and Aquaria for freshwater species conservation soft launched in 2025, with the goal of supporting zoos and aquaria in their work towards freshwater conservation.
The alliance supports members in their work through sharing knowledge, skills, capacity, and showing a united front in the face of threats to freshwater and the species that call it home.
By the end of 2025, 11 zoos and aquaria have confirmed their participation, showing their dedication to freshwater species conservation, and we look forward to many more.
The SHOAL grew
In September, we welcomed the brilliant Grace Brady onto the SHOAL team as Data Officer. Dedicated to our 1,000 Fishes species database, Grace has joined us at the perfect moment to help meet our Blueprint’s ambitious goals.
“Joining SHOAL in September was a welcome pivot from marine research to freshwater conservation. Everyone on the team has been so welcoming, and it was especially great to meet everyone in-person at the WCC! I am excited to see what we can all accomplish in 2026.”
– Grace Brady, Data Officer, SHOAL
We began the monitoring of 1,000 Fishes
A key component of Grace Brady’s role is to keep track of work being done for the SHOAL Priority Fishes, meaning we can keep an accurate tally of the number of species that have conservation action, which are fed into our 1,000 Fishes target.
This work is one of the widest inclusive conservation monitoring programmes in existence.
“Adding the 2025 IUCN Red List updates to our 1,000 Fishes database allows me to focus on individual fish species, as opposed to processing data queries. I enjoy this specific aspect of the role and expanding my knowledge on our newly-assessed Priority Fishes. This year, many Tanganyikan cichlids were assessed and reassessed, as well as a gudgeon species found on the border between China and the DPRK/North Korea.”
– Grace Brady, Data Officer, SHOAL
We stopped by the IUCN World Conservation Congress 2025
In October the SHOAL team spent a whirlwind few days at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi.
SHOAL were involved in 6 sessions – three in the Forum and three in the Exhibition. We also held a booth, where we made loads of exciting new connections, and caught up with our existing funders and partners.
A congress highlight was all 15 of the motions we followed being approved, including 2 motions we proposed ourselves.
“One of the major highlights was the first presence of SHOAL including many of our partners at the WCC where freshwater conservation and species conservation were given a strong show of support and increased attention. We hope this platform will lead to further action for this overlooked component of biodiversity conservation and we can pass the baton onto the 17th CBD COP in Armenia.”
– Mike Baltzer, Executive Director, SHOAL
And not to mention it was at the congress that all 6 members of the SHOAL team finally met in person for the very FIRST TIME! With the SHOAL team based in the UK, Singapore and the USA, chances to meet in person are rare, which made the congress even more special.
Read all about team SHOAL’s time at the WCC→
We partnered with AMAZONAS and Practical Fishkeeping magazines
We were thrilled to help bridge the gap between passionate aquarists and the conservation sector by partnering with AMAZONAS and Practical Fishkeeping, two of the US and UK’s leading aquarium mags.
“We at Practical Fishkeeping care deeply about fish, and not just those in aquariums. Throughout the year we have shared stories from SHOAL and their partners about the struggles freshwater fish face and the amazing work being done to help them in a bid to raise awareness of the threats to freshwater environments that often get forgotten. We have a responsibility to share our fishes’ stories, and we are grateful for our chance to do that in partnership with SHOAL.”
Alex Bell, Editor, Practical Fishkeeping
“At a time when so many stories in the conservation space are depressing, partnering with SHOAL has been a bright spot for AMAZONAS and our readers. Their initiatives are actionable, measurable, and inspirational, providing a hopeful path towards preservation for the some of the most overlooked and imperiled species in this amazing, watery world we are so lucky to call home.”
Alex Rose, Editor, Amazonas
Regular readers will have been treated to an article from SHOAL every month in Practical Fishkeeping and a new SHOAL feature in every issue of AMAZONAS in 2025, and we look forward to continuing the partnership with both magazines next year
Find out more about Practical Fishkeeping magazine→
Find out more about AMAZONAS magazine→
The Rufford Foundation supported us with significant funding
The Rufford Foundation granted £100,000 of vital funds to support work in Papua New Guinea and Papua in Indonesia, along with SHOAL’s first projects on killifish in Tanzania.
Each of these projects will significantly help us in our 1,000 Fishes goal of ensuring conservation action is mobilised for 1,000 of the planet’s most threatened freshwater fish species by 2035.
We sweat the small stuff in our Tiny Fishes report
Under the wire at the end of the year, in December we published Tiny Fishes: The miniature marvels that slip through the net, spotlighting the tiny freshwater fishes that play outsized ecological roles – and are often the first to disappear when habitats decline.
Tiny fishes are chronically overlooked, even in a species group which itself is overlooked, so our report aims to catalyse tiny fishes into the conservation conversation.
“Miniature fishes are small wonders of evolution.”
– George Mattox, Federal University of São Carlos in Brazil
There’ll be more on tiny fishes in 2026 – watch this space!
Three new SHOAL-ASAP grants were awarded to our brilliant partners
Also in December, three of SHOAL’s ASAP grantees were awarded continuation grants, to help them in their excellent work of saving Priority Species.
“December 2025 saw the awarding of three new SHOAL-ASAP grants to existing action partners in Indonesia and Thailand enabling conservation efforts on three ASAP species, two of which have not previously benefited from in situ interventions. It is extremely exciting to see our Southeast Asia programme go from strength to strength, and I cannot wait to witness the positive impacts these projects will bring in 2026 and beyond.”
– Dr. Nathaniel NG, Southeast Asia Coordinator, SHOAL / IUCN SSC ASAP
We can’t wait to see what’s to come in 2026 from Airlangga University’s Veryl Hasan’s Betta miniopinna project, Winda Eka Putri from Tropical Conservation Society’s Parosphromenus ornaticauda project, and Chavalit Vidthayanon’s work on Ceratoglanis pachynema.
Thank you for supporting SHOAL in 2025! Here’s a little taste of what to look forward to in 2026…
- Even MORE webinars
- Our second all partner meeting – we loved how much time we got to spend celebrating our SHOAL this year.
- Our ‘Springs in the spring’ campaign.
- The fifth New Species report – place your bets now on how many new freshwater species were discovered in 2025!
- A landmark report about culturally-lost fishes – keep your eyes peeled.
- An action planning meeting for conservation in the Mekong.
- New killifish projects in East Africa.
- A Madagascar Action plan for freshwater fishes – SHOAL is a junior partner in an alliance of organisations.
- Our first report on the 1,000 Fishes initiative.
If you’d like to support SHOAL’s work to conserve and protect the Earth’s freshwater species and habitats, please donate here.
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