Goureen
The Killarney shad (Alosa killarnensis), also called the goureen, is a freshwater fish in the family Clupeidae, endemic to a single lake in Ireland, Lough Leane in County Kerry. Research has shown that it is a landlocked subspecies of the anadromous, twait shad (Alosa fallax), arriving in the lake after the Last Glacial Maximum about 10,000 years ago. This fish is at risk from eutrophication and the introduction of alien species of fish to the lake and the International Union for Conservation of Nature has rated it as "critically endangered".
Lough Leane in the Killarney National Park, southwestern Ireland, is only the place where this fish lives. It has been listed as critically endangered by the IUCN. Eutrophication and introduction of alien fish species such as common roach Rutilus rutilus and common bream Abramis brama are the most probable threats. The shad is also very sensitive to pollution.
The adopted method for conservation involves the identification of spawning sites and protecting them from declining water quality.
The Killarney shad feeds in the pelagic zone of the lake and spawns in shallow bays.It has a life span of about five years. Males are smaller than the females. They generally feed on zooplankton, and spawn in June - July on gravel bars and gravelled shallows and around the islands of the lake.
