Editing Sea of Galilee (section)

==Ecology==
[[File:Tilapia zilli Kineret.jpg|thumb|[[Redbelly tilapia]] (''Tilapia zillii''; "St. Peter's fish") served in a Tiberias restaurant]]

The warm waters of the Sea of Galilee support various flora and fauna, which have supported a significant commercial fishery for more than two millennia. Local flora include various reeds along most of the shoreline as well as [[phytoplankton]]. Fauna include [[zooplankton]], [[benthos]] and a number of fish species such as ''[[Mirogrex terraesanctae]]''.<ref name=ilec/> The Fishing and Agricultural Division of the Ministry of Water and Agriculture of Israel lists 10 families of fish living in the lake, with a total of 27 species – 19 native and 8 [[introduced species]].<ref name="Rafael">{{cite journal |title= St. Peter's Fish in Israel|author= Dr. Rafael D. Guererro III |journal= Agriculture Monthly |date= 5 May 2018 |issue= August 2015 |location= Manila, Philippines |url= https://www.agriculture.com.ph/2018/05/05/st-peters-fish-in-israel/ |access-date=21 October 2019 }}</ref> Local fishermen talk of four types of fish: "مشط musht" ([[tilapia]]); sardin (the Kinneret bleak, ''[[Mirogrex terraesanctae]]''); "بني biny" or Jordan barbel, ''[[Luciobarbus longiceps]]'' ([[barb (fish)|barb-like]]); and North African sharptooth [[catfish]] (''[[Clarias gariepinus]]'').<ref name="Rafael"/> The tilapia species include the Galilean tilapia (''[[Sarotherodon galilaeus]]''), the blue tilapia (''[[Oreochromis aureus]]''), and the redbelly tilapia (''[[Tilapia zillii]]'').<ref name="Rafael"/> Fish caught commercially include ''[[Tristramella simonis]]'' and the Galilean tilapia, locally called "St. Peter's fish".<ref name=ilec/> In 2005, {{convert|300|ST}} of tilapia were caught by local fishermen. This dropped to {{convert|8|ST}} in 2009 because of [[overfishing]].<ref>{{Cite journal |date= June 2010 |title= Still Fishers of Men |journal= Vermont Catholic |volume=1 |issue=12 |page=3 }}</ref> A fish species that is unique to the lake, ''[[Tristramella sacra]]'', used to [[Spawn (biology)|spawn]] in the marsh and has not been seen since the 1990s droughts.<ref name="IUCN" /> Conservationists fear this species may have become [[Extinction|extinct]].<ref name="IUCN" />

Low water levels in drought years have stressed the [[Lake ecosystem|lake's ecology]]. This may have been aggravated by over-extraction of water for either the National Water Carrier to supply other parts of Israel or, since 1994, for the supply of water to Jordan. Droughts of the early and mid-1990s dried out the marshy northern margin of the lake.<ref name="IUCN">{{cite iucn |author=Goren, M. |date=2014 |title=''Tristramella sacra'' |volume=2014 |page=e.T61372A19010617 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2014-1.RLTS.T61372A19010617.en |access-date=12 November 2021}}{{Dead link|date=September 2019 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> It is hoped that drastic reductions in the amount of water pumped through the National Water Carrier will help restore the lake's ecology over the span of several years.

The lake, with its immediate surrounds, has been recognised as an [[Important Bird Area]] by [[BirdLife International]] because it supports populations of [[black francolin]]s and non-breeding [[griffon vulture]]s as well as many wintering waterbirds, including [[marbled teal]]s, [[great crested grebe]]s, [[grey heron]]s, [[great white egret]]s, [[great cormorant]]s and [[black-headed gull]]s.<ref name="bli">{{cite web |url=http://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/lake-kinneret-and-kinerot-iba-israel|title= Lake Kinneret and Kinerot|author=<!--Not stated--> |date=2021|website= BirdLife Data Zone|publisher= BirdLife International|access-date= 23 February 2021}}</ref>

{{Wide image|Sea_of_Galilee_(panoramic_view,_ca._2006).jpg|800px|{{center|Panoramic view of the Sea of Galilee}}}}