Plants and animals

The habitats created by the Danube and its tributaries host a unique mix of species. But many habitats are degraded by man-made changes to the river profile and width, water depth and flow velocity following the construction of dams, weirs and canals. Most migratory fish including sturgeons and paddlefish are endangered or extinct by being disconnected from their spawning grounds or by being over-exploited.

The habitats created by the Danube and its tributaries host a unique mix of species, with about 2,000 vascular plants and more than 5,000 animal species, including 41 mammals, 180 breeding birds, 100 fish, eight reptiles and twelve amphibians.

Did you know?

The Danube River Basin has more than 100 different species of fish – including five sturgeon species – and it is home to rare birds like the white pelican, white-tailed eagle or black stork.

The remaining large floodplain forests and the Danube Delta are the last refuges in continental Europe for the white-tailed eagle and the white pelicans. Despite being driven almost to extinction beavers have been successfully reintroduced in the upper and middle Danube.

Changes to the river profile and width, water depth and flow velocity following the construction of dams, dikes, weirs and canals massively disturb the aquatic environment by disconnecting animals from their spawning grounds or otherwise degrading their habitat. Migratory species such as the sturgeon are now extinct in the upper stretches of the Danube as a result of the blocking of their spawning runs. In a stretch of the River Inn (Germany), for instance, the professional fisheries collapsed after the construction of impoundments at Jettenbach (1921). Today only 2 fish species are able to maintain their stocks by natural reproduction (over 30 fish species before 1921). 

Most migratory fish including sturgeons and paddlefish are endangered or extinct in the Danube Basin due to habitat loss, habitat degradation and over-exploitation.

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