 178 fish species are endemic to the Yangtze River Basin.Many are only found in some section of the river basin and especially the upper reach (above Yichang, but below the headwaters in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau) is rich with 279 species, including 147 Yangtze endemics and 97 strict endemics (found only in this part of the basin).In contrast, the headwaters, where the average altitude is above , are only home to 14 highly specialized species, but 8 of these are endemic to the river.