Serrasalmus neveriensis is a localized endemic for some fluvial systems of the central coast of Venezuela. It is known for a total of 182 specimens, of which approximately half are estimated to be mature. It is estimated that the total population size will not exceed 250 mature individuals. Therefore, this species is assessed as Endangered.

Serrasalmus neveriensis was described for several coastal rivers in the north of Venezuela (Neveri, Tuy, Guapo and Laguna de Tacarigua) that belong to the basin of the Caribbean Sea (Lasso et al. 2003, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. 2009). According to the description of the species (Machado-Allison c 1993), the holotype (MBUCV 15439) was captured in 1986 and comes from the Río Querecual, a tributary of the Río Neverí sub-basin, Anzoategui State. Some paratypes come from the same locality as the holotype (MBUCV 27936, four specimens). However, according to the geographic analysis of this locality and the current hydrography carried out in this evaluation, the Río Querecual (type locality) is a tributary of the Río Aragua, which flows directly into the Caribbean Sea. It is very important to mention that the Río Aragua until 1968 was a tributary of the Río Neverí, from which it was separated with the construction of an artificial channel called Barbacoas, constituting from that year onward into an independent and separate sub-basin of the Río Neverí (León and Quintana 2008).

Likewise, Serrarsalmus neveriensis, was described from a series of localities of the Miranda State, with specimens of the Río Tuy sub-basin, such as the Río Cuira (MBUCV 3736, one specimen), Río Tuy (MBUCV 3650 and 3677 MHNLS 2428, four specimens), Quebrada Seca, tributary of the El Lagartijo reservoir (MHNLS 2108, five specimens) and the El Lagartijo Reservoir (MHNLS 2520, one specimen), as well as the Río Guapo sub-basin (MBUCV 20783, one specimen) and its mouth in Laguna de Tacarigua  (MBUCV 20698 - 20702, nine specimens) All the specimens mentioned were captured between 1966 and 1990 (Machado-Allison et al. 1993a).

Before the formal description of the species, Mago (1968), Marrero and Machado-Allison (1990) and Rodríguez-Olarte (1995) already registered this species in the Río Tuy sub-basin (without indicating a precise locality), as Serrasalmus sp., as did Rodenas and López-Rojas (1993) at the mouth of Río Guapo, in Laguna de Tacarigua.

Subsequently, several authors have indicated this species from its type locality, Río Querecual, Río Neverí sub-basin. These mentions were reported in revision works of the Serrasalmidae family, systematic catalogs, regional inventories, and informative works (Machado-Allison and Fink 1996, Lasso et al. 1997, Provenzano et al. 1998, Machado-Allison 2002, Jégu 2003, Mago and Marín 2004, Machado-Allison 2014, González et al. 2015, Fricke et al. 2020).

Additionally, other works indicate Serrasalmus neveriensis for other localities, or new records for already known localities. Solorzano et al. (1997) indicate it for seven sampling stations of the coastal sub-basin of the Río Guapo, for the main channel of this river and tributaries of its reservoir (Quebrada Chaguaramas, Río Aragua, Río Chiquito ), with at least 133 specimens captured in 1997. Mago and Marín (2004), recorded it from the main Río Neverí, with one specimen captured in 1995.

Most of the records detailed above were mentioned by Campo et al. (2008, 2015), in the regional evaluation of the conservation status of this species.

In our review of collections from Venezuela (MBUCV, MHNLS, EBRG, and MCNG), we found the material indicated by all the cited authors, with the addition of five specimens captured in the Río Guapo in 2002 (MBUCV 31599) and 2004 (MHNLS 16229, 16293).

Additionally, one of the authors of this evaluation (I. Mikolji) made observations of Serrasalmus neveriensis in the main riverbed of the Río Neverí (10º05'19''N, 64º 37'29''W, 14 m asl) in the dry season (January) 2007. Four specimens were observed underwater through dives, and eight specimens were captured with hooks in one hour. In February 2008, multiple specimens were again hooked, fixed and brought to MBUCV. I. Mikolji also noted that their caudal fins had semi-circular bites on them suggesting cannibalism or a possible aggressive reproduction behavior in the species.

In conclusion, the distribution of Serrasalmus neveriensis is a localized endemic for some fluvial systems of the central coast of Venezuela, such as the sub-basins of the rios Tuy, Guapo, including its mouth in Laguna de Tacarigua and the sub-basins of Río Aragua and Neverí, on the eastern coast of the country. These systems belong to the so-called hydrographic basin of the Caribbean Sea.

For a detailed description of the acronyms of the cited collections see Sabaj (2016) and Fricke and Eschmeyer (2020).

Finally, the absence of Serrasalmus neveriensis in other coastal fluvial systems of northern Venezuela, intermediate between the sub-basins of the Ríos Tuy and Guapo, and the sub-basins of the rios Aragua and Neverí, draws our attention. Among these is the sub-basin of the Unare river that has been studied since the 1960s, and S. neveriensis is not included in its ichthyofauna (Mago 1965, Fernández-Yépez 1970, Herrera and López 1997, Marín 2000, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. 2009). Likewise, it has not been recorded in river systems neighbouring the Río Neverí, such as the río Manzanares (Aguilera and Carvajal 1976, Pérez et al. 2003, Ruíz et al. 2005, Salazar et al. 2018, Salazar and Arcia-Barreto 2020).

Originally, Serrasalmus neveriensis was only known from the type series of specimens (holotype: MBUCV 15439 and paratypes: MBUCV 27936, 3736, 3650, 3677, 20698 - 20702, 20783, MHNLS 2108, 2428, 2520), a total of 26 specimens captured between 1966 to 1990. 

There are no population estimates for this species. Only in the work of Solorzano et al. (1997), they indicate the capture of 133 specimens and the observation of another five, in seven sampling stations of the coastal sub-basin of the Río Guapo (Quebrada Chaguramas, Río Aragua and Río Guapo) and four localities from the El Guapo or Guamito reservoir in 1997. In addition to this work, we must point out the record of a specimen captured in 1995, in the Río Neverí, presented by Mago and Marín (2004). 

Additionally, one of the authors of this evaluation (I. Mikolji) made observations of Serrasalmus neveriensis in the main riverbed of the Río Neverí (10º05'19''N, 64º 37'29''W, 14 m asl) in the dry season (January) 2007. Four specimens were observed through dives, and eight specimens were captured with hooks in one hour. 

Likewise, in our review of collections from Venezuela (MBUCV, MHNLS, EBRG and MCNG), we found the material indicated by all the cited authors, with the addition of five specimens captured in the Río Guapo in 2002 (MBUCV 31599) and 2004 (MHNLS 16229, 16293). In conclusion, Serrasalmus neveriensis is known for a total of 182 specimens, of which approximately half are estimated to be mature. 

For a detailed description of the acronyms of the cited collections see Sabaj (2016) and Fricke and Eschmeyer (2020). 

Finally, as there are no current published studies that assess the status of its subpopulations, its trend is unknown, although it is believed to be decreasing, given the serious threats and severe degradation of the ecosystem where it lives (See Threats section).

Serrasalmus neveriensis lives in coastal rivers in northern Venezuela, both in its central and eastern regions, in the so-called Caribbean Sea Basin. It is the only species of the genus with such a limited distribution. It is also has the northernmost latitudinal distribution in South America (Machado-Allison et al. 1993a, Machado-Allison and Fink 1996, Machado-Allison 2002, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. 2009, Machado-Allison 2014). 

The sub-basin of the rios Tuy and Guapo, where Serrasalmus neveriensis has been recorded, are born in the Cordillera de la Costa Central (CCR) (Serranías del Litoral y del Interior), at 2,429 m asl in the Codazzi Peak Natural Monument and 1,000 m asl in the Fila La Bandera, Sierra del Bachiller, respectively. Río Tuy has a length of 240 km, an area of 6,600 km² and a flow of 82 m³/sec and empties into the Caribbean Sea, while Río Guapo has a length of 60 km, an area of 475 km² and empties in La Laguna de Tacarigua, east of the Río Tuy. The Río Neverí naturally has a route of 120 km from its sources in the Macizo del Turimiquire (Cerro El Alcance 2,000 m asl), and a surface of 4,271 km², with a flow of 35 m³/sec (maximum: 2,112,00 m³/sec, minimum: 1.24 m³/sec), and empties into the Caribbean Sea of the eastern coast of Venezuela (Zinck 1982, Solorzano et al. 1997, Mago and Marín 2004, León and Sánchez 2008, González et al. 2015, Salazar and Arcia-Barreto 2020). However, its main tributary, the Río Aragua, which occupies an area of about 3,065 km², was separated from the Río Neverí basin, since in 1968 the mouth of the Río Aragua was channelled and diverted directly to the Caribbean Sea, through the Canal de Barbacoas (León and Sánchez 2008,) isolating and causing a significant water deficit in the Río Neverí, at least in its lower sector. 

However, according to the information provided by some authors (Machado-Allison et al. 1993, Solorzano et al. 1997, Mago and Marín 2004) and the analysis of the records of the national collections (MBUCV, MHNLS, EBRG and MCNG), Serrasalmus neveriensis prefers the lower sectors of these basins (5 - 240 m asl), in the regions of plains or alluvial plains which are a result of the sedimentation in the foothills of the Tuy, Guapo, Aragua and Neverí rivers from the foothills of the Cordillera de la Costa Central (CCR) and Macizo del Turimiquire (TM). We have recorded it both in the lotic ecosystems of the larger rivers or main sub-basins (Tuy: 240 m asl, Guapo: 30 m asl and Neverí: 5 m and 14 m asl) and in tributaries of the Río Aragua (Río Querecual : 55 m asl) and Guapo (Río Aragua: 130 m asl, Río Chiquito: 100 m asl, Quebrada Chaguaramas 135 m asl), as well as in lentic ecosystems, such as marginal lagoons of the Río Tuy (170 m asl), and at the mouth of the Río Guapo in the Laguna de Tacarigua  (10 m asl) and artificial stone systems such as the El Lagartijo (170 m asl) and El Guapo or El Guamito (100 m asl) reservoirs. 

For a detailed description of the acronyms of the cited collections see Sabaj (2016) and Fricke and Eschmeyer (2020). 

It is important to mention that although Serrasalmus neveriensis is recorded in the Laguna de Tacarigua, it was only captured in two sites at the mouth of the Río Guapo, in this coastal marine body of water (Machado-Allison et al. 1993a). The ichthyofauna of this lagoon is markedly marine and estuarine, since of the 52 registered species, 34 (65%) belong to this ecological group and only 18 (35%) are primary freshwater fish (Rodenas and López-Rojas 1993). 

It is a bit complex to classify the types of waters (sensu Sioli 1975) of the coastal river systems where Serrasalmus neveriensis inhabits. This is due to the physical characteristics of the soils through which these rivers flow and also to the state of conservation and the anthropogenic impacts present in the sub-basins (see Threats). Due to this situation, the physical and chemical characteristics of the waters can vary both in geographical (spatial) and temporal terms, between the climatic seasons of rain and drought and the hydrological periods of high waters and low waters. In this way, we can find white and clear waters in the systems where this species inhabits. 

Regarding the use of the habitat and ecosystem, apparently, Serrasalmus neveriensis has a preference for freshwater lentic systems, since of the 182 known specimens of the species, 138 (76%) come from the El Guapo or El Guamito reservoirs (Solorzano et al. 1997 ). Some physico-chemical parameters such as temperature and dissolved oxygen are presented by these authors for the El Guapo or El Guamito reservoirs, ranging between 30 - 32 ° C and 3 - 9.7 mg / l, at a depth of 5 m and on the surface. of this body of water. Serrasalmus neveriensis was the most important species of the El Guapo or El Guamito reservoir, according to the study by Solorzano et al. (1997), with 21% of the Relative Abundance and 88% of the Frequency, being recorded in seven of the eight localities evaluated. In part, this information is suggested in the local assessments of this species presented by Campo et al. (2008, 2015). For their part, Solorzano et al. (1997), captured specimens between 5 and 20 cm in standard length (SL), with 33% of specimens between 5 and 10 cm SL, 27% between 10 and 15 cm in SL and 41% between 15 and 20 cm SL. These population data suggest two subpopulations, the product of two reproductive and recruitment events in the El Guapo or El Guamito Reservoir. 

In the Distribution section, we mentioned the absence of Serrasalmus neveriensis in other coastal fluvial systems of the north of Venezuela, between the sub-basins of the rios Tuy and Guapo, and the sub-basins of the Aragua and Nerverí. Among these is the Río Unare sub-basin, which with a length of 240 km, an area of 21,500 km² and a flow of 56 to 226 m³/ sec (Rengel-Avilés 2018, Martínez 2020), has been studied since the 1960s of the last century, and S. neveriensis is not included in its ichthyofauna (Mago 1965, Fernández-Yépez 1969, Herrera and López 1997, Marín 2000, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. 2009). This is especially disturbing, since this sub-basin is the one with the largest number of reservoirs in Venezuela (about 18), which, as we have already indicated, are lentic ecosystems that seem to be beneficial for S. neveriensis. Therefore, its absence in this sub-basin may be due to the physicochemical characteristics of the waters, with many dissolved solids in suspension or to the large number of introduced species, some five exotic species and 15 transferred from the Orinoco river basin, as well as the inadequate management ecological and technical nature of the reservoirs of this sub-basin (Lasso-Alcalá 2001, 2003; Lasso-Alcalá et al. 2014; Martínez 2020). Likewise, Serrasalmus neveriensis has not been recorded in river systems neighbouring the Río Neverí, such as the Río Manzanares (Aguilera and Carvajal 1976, Pérez et al. 2003, Ruíz et al. 2005, Salazar et al. 2018, Salazar and Arcia-Barreto 2020). 

All aspects of the biology, such as feeding, reproduction, etc. of Serrasalmus neverienesis are unknown. In other related species of the genus Serrasalmus, feeding is fundamentally carnivorous in adults, with a diet made up of smaller fish and their fins, supplemented with fruits and seeds from the flooded forest in the high water hydrological period. In pre-adults the consumption of fins and scales of other fish is common, supplemented with insects and seeds, and of juveniles, their diet can be made up of zooplankton and small insects. They are gregarious as juveniles, forming schools, but solitary and territorial as adults (Machado-Allison 1987, 1993, 2002, 2014; Machado-Allison et al. 1993b, 2018; Machado-Allison and Fink 1996; Lasso 2002).

Likewise, in species of the genus Serrasalmus (S. rhombeus, S. irritans, S. medinai, S. elongatus, S. altuvei), from other regions of Venezuela (Orinoco plains), reproduction occurs in the months of March, at the end of the dry season and the low-water hydrological period, as well as throughout the high-water hydrological season and rainy season, from April to November (Winemiller and Taphorn 1989, Lasso 2002). Spawning can occur in riparian vegetation, as in many other Characiformes (Machado-Allison 1987, 1993). 

Finally, Serrasalmus neveriensis shares its habitat in the Río Tuy sub-basin, with at least 60 species that have been cited for this river (Marrero and Machado-Allison 1990, Rodríguez-Olarte 1995, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. 2009, González et al. 2015). In the middle and upper Río Guapo, Solorzano et al. (1997), indicated it along with 22 species, and at its mouth in the Laguna de Tacarigua, Rodenas and López-Rojas (1993), captured it along with 17 other freshwater species. In the eastern region of Venezuela, Mago and Marín (2004) mention it along with 40 other species, 19 strict freshwater species and 21 estuarine marine species from the Río Neverí. According to Rodríguez-Olarte et al. (2009), the Tuy drainage, in the Central Caribbean province, represents the third hotspot of the Caribbean versant of Venezuela (60 sp., 17 (28%) endemic) however, this diversity no longer seems exceptional if grouped with the adjacent Lago de Valencia and Unare drainages.

Historically, the North Central Coastal region, where the exorheic hydrographic sub-basins of the rios (from east to west) Aroa, Yaracuy, Tuy, Capaya, Curiepe, Guapo and several other smaller basins (Caribbean Sea Basin) and the endorheic basin are found from Lago de Valencia, has been the most densely populated in Venezuela, since 43% of the country's population (approximately 12.5 million inhabitants), are settled in this region (Martinez et al. 2020). Due to this, it is one of the natural regions with greatest impacts on their basins and their biodiversity. There is a long list of threats, from the alteration of habitat due to deforestation, erosion and sedimentation due to bad agricultural practices, the pollution of water from agrochemicals, domestic and industrial effluents, construction of development of large cities and urban development, enclosure and canalization of water courses to convert them into effluent systems of cities, construction of reservoirs, extraction of water from basins for agricultural use, industrial and urban, non-metallic mining for the extraction of sand from the main canal and river banks, canalizations and diversions of rivers for the construction of roads, introduction of species and climate change. 

Deforestation or reduction of forest cover due to poor agricultural practices in the period from 1988 to 2010, both in the Coordillera de la Costa Central (CCR) and the Macizo del Turimiquire (TM) has been very strong, intensifying in the last 10 years. The mountain evergreen forests in the states of Aragua, Capital District, Miranda (in the CCR) have been reduced between 50 and 30%, in this way they fall in the categories of Critically Endangered (CR) with the possible total elimination or almost total, if the trends of surface reduction are maintained in the next 30 years. The evergreen forests in the Turimiquire massif, in the northeast of the country, where the impact of agricultural practices, with deforestation, repeated burning and removal of the understory for crops, have reduced and degraded forests, especially in the low and middle lands, where they have been replaced by anthropic savannas and shrublands, while in the highlands they are intervened by coffee plantations. Important hydraulic works have also been developed there, such as reservoirs, regional aqueducts and numerous local aqueducts (Lentino et al. 2005, Oliveira-Miranda et al. 2010). A similar situation occurs with the highest cloud forests, whose reduction observed between 1988 and 2010 of 32%, has been categorized as Endangered (EN) and Critically Endangered (CR). Finally, the situation worsens with the lower mountain forests (semi-deciduous or deciduous), where the reduction oscillates between 20% in Sucre state, 60% in the capital district in Aragua state and 80%, for which it was categorized In Critical Hazard (CR) (Oliveira-Miranda et al. 2010). 

As explained in the Habitats and Ecology section, the construction of reservoirs or dams seems to be beneficial for Serrasalmus neveriensis, according to the results of Solórzano et al. (1997), supported by the high abundance of this species in the El Guapo reservoir or the Guamito. In this way, in the sub-basin of the Río Tuy, there are at least eight other reservoirs such as El Lagartijo where the species has also been registered and those of Taguaza, Taguacita, La Mariposa, La Pereza, Agua Fría, and Santa Elena and the Reservoir from Turimiquire in the Río Neverí sub-basin. However, the presence of reservoirs can be harmful downstream of river systems, since they reduce water flow, modify the hydrological regime of the basins and produce large debits in runoff, tending to concentrate only in short periods of time during the river period of greatest annual rainfall. In turn, this reduced flow results in a higher concentration of organic and inorganic chemical pollutants. Likewise, the reservoirs cause the interruption of the migratory reproductive cycle of the fish species adapted to the Lotico ecosystems of flowing waters (Winemiller et al. 1996, Zapata and Usma 2013), or the genetic exchange between the subpopulations of the low and middle regions and high watersheds. Likewise, due to the construction of dams that causes the change or conversion of a lotic ecosystem (river) or running waters, to a lentic ecosystem or stagnant waters, the local extinction of subpopulations of some species that inhabit mountain rivers has also been documented. In the sub-basin of the Río Tuy (Caribbean basin), Cordillera de la Costa Central (CCR), Lasso-Álcalá (2013) indicates the local extinction of Trichomycterus mondolfi (Trichomycteridae) and Cordilancystrus nephelion (Loricaridae), in the Río Mesia-Guere, system after the construction and commissioning of the Santa Elena Reservoir in 1999. 

As mentioned in the Habitats and Ecology section, the Río Neverí sub-basin originally and naturally occupied about 4,271 km², of which its main tributary, the Río Aragua, occupies an area of about 3,065 km². In this sense, we must highlight a very important physical modification in the Río Neverí basin, since between 1968 and 1972 the mouth of the Río Aragua was channeled and diverted directly to the Caribbean Sea, through the Barbacoas Channel, isolating this sub-basin of the Río Neverí, causing a significant water deficit, at least in its lower sector. Another noteworthy modification was the construction in 1971 of a spillway channel in the Río Neverí basin (León and Quintana 2008, Monente 2018). These works caused a geographic and genetic isolation between the populations of Serrasalmus neveriensis from the Río Neverí and the populations from the Río Aragua, separated for more than 40 years. 

Regarding water pollution, the Río Tuy basin is one of the most affected and deteriorated in Venezuela (Mogollón et al. 1987, 1993), since it is the main collector of waste discharges or agricultural, urban effluents and industrial centers of the main populated centres of the country located in the states of Aragua, Capital District and Miranda, where 43% of the human population of Venezuela lives (about 12.5 million inhabitants), having as main tributaries the rios Guaire, Guarenas and Guatire (rio Grande or Caucagua), among others (Delpretti 1989, MARNR 1992). In this regard, very low values of dissolved oxygen (2 - 4 mg / l) and high of conductivity (770 - 1,270 mhos) have been observed, in periods of drought and in areas of the highest human activity of the sub-basin. Likewise, the contamination, shown by the environmental parameters and heavy metals in the sub-basin of the Río Tuy has been very high and always increasing. Acosta et al. (2002) record abnormal values (very high or very low) of temperature (> 28ºC), dissolved oxygen (<5.6ml / l), total nitrogen (> 55µmol / l), total phosphorus (> 17µmol / l ) and heavy metals in their surface sediments such as copper (> 18µg / g), cadmium (> 3µg / g), chromium (> 5µg / g), lead (> 0.9µg / g) and nickel (> 11µg / g) indicating its progressive increase over a period of 14 years. In the same way, Melendez et al. (2017), recorded high concentrations of Na (161.0 mg / l), K (10.6 mg / l), Ca (106.6 mg / l), Mg (53.6 mg / l), Cl- (345.3 mg / l) , SO4- (172.6 mg / l) and NO3 (13.8 mg / l) and very high values of temperature (33.6 ºC), conductivity (1853 µS / cm) and alkalinity (375.8 mg / l of HCO3), associated with alarming levels of contamination in its riverbed, as well as in some of its main tributaries, this as a consequence of the industrial, domestic and agricultural activities that take place in the sub-basin. 

In the Río Neverí sub-basin, the contamination of its waters is also very marked, due to its domestic, industrial and agricultural use. Mogollon et al. (1993), record high conductivity values, higher than 300 m mhos for the Río Neverí sub-basin. According to Campo et al (2008, 2005) and Salazar and Arcia-Barreto (2020), research on the Neverí report intense pollution by sewage, solid waste, hydrocarbons and metals, which has caused, among other problems, high levels of sedimentation and eutrophication with the development of aquatic weeds like Eichornia crassipes and the progressive accumulation of organic matter in the environment, which have alarmingly deteriorated the basin. 

In general terms, the rivers that are born in the different orographic systems located in the north of Venezuela present a state of conservation that goes from fair to bad, and especially those that drain towards the Caribbean Sea, except for the upper basins of the rivers of the mountain range of the coast (Blanco et al. 2015; Rodríguez-Olarteet al. 2008, 2019; Martínez 2020). However, in the high sectors of these sub-watersheds, ichthyological diversity is very low.

Another threat detected for S. neverienesis is overfishing, due to the fact that in the El Río Guapo the species is subjected to strong and intense pressure from subsistence fishing, which uses not only hooks, but also fishing nets (Solorzano et al. 1997; Campo et al. 2008, 2015)

The sub-basins of the rivers that drain into the Caribbean Sea in Venezuela are the ones with the highest number of introduced species, with at least 10 of exotic origin and 22 of transferred origin (Mago 1968; Lasso-Alcalá 2001, 2003, 2013). In the Río Tuy basin, the Black Tilapia Oreochromis mossammbicus (González et al. 2015) has been recorded, among others, which has a series of implications, given the biological and ecological characteristics of this species of Cichlidae as piscivorous predatory habits, a moderate fecundity but with strong parental care of eggs and young (territorialism) and rapid population growth, among others, the ecological consequences that these introduced fish species may have are unpredictable (Lasso-Alcalá et al. 2014). Some of these consequences are interspecific competition, displacement, extinction of native species, changes in the specific composition and trophic structure and loss of biodiversity in the ecosystem, for which it has been classified as one of the 100 most harmful exotic species.

Climate change or global climatic change is a significant threat to the survival of Serrasalmus neveriensis. In this sense, the extraordinary torrential rains that occurred in December 1999 (1,910 mm in just 15 days), in the Cordillera of the Central Coast of Venezuela, generated a catastrophe with more than 15,000 missing people and 75,000 victims, as well as 3,500 millions of dollars in losses, the destruction of more than 15,000 homes and other infrastructure (Genatios amd Lafuente 2003). Among these infrastructures, these rains caused the collapse of the dam of the El Guapo or El Guamito reservoir, in the Río Guapo sub-basin, due to the maximum flow observed (310 m³ / s) at the dam site, well above the maximum flow of design (101.8 m³ / s) (Liendo 2000, Mendez 2017). In forty minutes, approximately a volume of water was released in the astonishing order of 120 hm³ (= 1.2 x 10¹¹ L), which produced a flood wave, whose peak was estimated to be around 12 m (Córdova and González 2006). This caused considerable damage to the entire sub-basin and its biodiversity, an issue that was never evaluated (Campo et al. 2008, 2015). According to Paredes-Trejo et al. (2020), these pluviometric changes have implications on the seasonal water regime of rivers, as they could trigger complex impacts on river ecosystems and their ichthyofauna. Due to the now exaggeratedly reduced flow of the rivers, during the dry season, fish are more vulnerable to overfishing and exposure to pesticides and pollutants in general (Winemiller et al. 1996). Similarly, climate variability (induced or not by global warming) can change the water regime of rivers (at least temporarily), putting the integrity and functioning of ecosystems at risk and causing their detriment. Consequently, the occurrence of years characterized by either a severe water deficit or a water surplus in conjunction with the overexploitation of hydrobiological resources and river pollution can reduce their conservation status (Silva et al. 2016). Furthermore, it is foreseeable that habitats and biota in watersheds that are experiencing excess or deficit rainfall may not evolve fast enough to adapt to the change in precipitation (Paredes-Trejo et al. 2020). In conclusion, these authors propose that if this situation continues, it would be necessary to establish special protection figures over those most affected regions identified as 'hotspots', which guarantee the conservation of hydrographic basins threatened by climate variability, induced or not by global warming.

In general terms, due to its low abundance, there are no clear data on its importance as a consumer or commercial species. However, according to Solórzano et al. (1997) and Campo et al. (2008, 2015) in the Río Guapo region and surrounding areas, Serrasalmus neveriensis is appreciated as a food resource, being the object of an important demand by local people.

Additionally, due to its striking colour pattern, it has potential as an ornamental species, like other species of the Serrasalmidae Family.

There are no specific measures for the protection of Serrasalmus neveriensis.

A small part of the sub-basins where this species lives is protected by some conservation and management figures called Areas Under the Special Administration Regime (ABRAE). In the Cordillera de La Costa Central (sub-basins of the rios Tuy and Guapo) and Cordillera de La Costa Oriental (sub-basins of the rios Aragua and Neverí), there are at least seven National Parks (PN San Esteban, Henri Pittier, Macarao, El Avíla, Guatopo, Laguna de Tacarigua and Mochíma), Natural Monuments (MN Pico Codazzi), and Port Areas of the Cities of Caracas, Barcelona, Guanta and Puerto La Cruz, as well as the Turimiquire Mountain Massif and other reservoirs, including El Guapo or El Guamito. Of all the ABRAE series listed, only the Guatopo National Park would be protecting the populations of Serrasalmus neveriensis registered in the systems of the Río Lagartijo and their reservoir and at least the tributaries of the left bank of the Río Cuira. Additionally, the Laguna de Tacarigua National Park would be protecting the populations of this species present in the sector of the mouth of the Río Guapo, and the population present in the El Guapo or Guamito reservoir, would be protected by the Protective Zone of this artificial body of water. However, the functionality of these areas is very limited and the effects on the vegetation cover due to illegal agricultural practices can be easily observed in satellite images (Google Earth). The effectiveness of the decrees on protected areas is not very high, as evidenced in the reports on their frequent capture and use for local consumption of this species (Campo et al. 2008, 2015). 

The rest of the ABRAE listed above only cover the highest sectors of the sub-basins, which are the regions where S. neveriensis does not inhabit, with which 60% of the areas and registered populations of this species, does not have any protection figure.

The above situation is common in all hydrographic basins in Venezuela, where, beyond the number and diversity of protected areas, their effectiveness is highly questioned, due in part to all the environmental and conservation problems (threats) mentioned in the previous section. On the other hand, and just as an example, in the western region of Venezuela, Rodríguez-Olarte et al. (2011) indicate that existing protected areas should be modified and expanded. This is due to the fact that most of the protected areas show a low effectiveness for the conservation of fish species, mainly because they are very small or because they include only fragments of tributaries or basins, or because they were located in mountain areas, where diversity species was minimal. This situation can be extrapolated to the protected areas of the central-north and eastern region of Venezuela. 

Finally, Serrasalmus neveriensis was regionally evaluated and classified as Vulnerable (Campo et al. 2008) and later as Endangered (Campo et al. 2015).