Search

Sharks are generally highly exposed to overexploitation and in addition, the increased pollution in the marine environment also negatively impacts them. Therefore, it is important to monitor inorganic contaminants in sharks. This study was conducted to elucidate heavy metal accumulation in the Smooth hound Mustelus mustelus and the Blue shark Prionace glauca by electrochemical technique from the North-Eastern Mediterranean Coast of Turkey. Cadmium, chromium, cobalt, copper, iron, lead, manganese, nickel and zinc were determined. These results showed that the concentrations of all the trace metals were significantly different both in the liver and muscle tissues of Blue shark and Smooth-hound shark (P < 0.001). Cr and Pb concentrations exceeded the maximum limit legalized by FAO (2003), EU (2005), and UNEP (2008). These results confirmed that the metal contamination in the North-Eastern Mediterranean area may pose a potential threat to the sustainability of Blue shark and Smooth-hound shark in the marine ecosystem.

Priacanthus sagittarius Starnes, 1988'in bir örneği Şubat 2021'de İskenderun Körfezi'nde (Konacık, Türkiye), 80 m derinlikten yakalanmıştır. Araştırmamız, Türkiye sularından balığın ikinci ve Türkiye'nin Güneydoğu Akdeniz kıyılarından da ilk kaydını ortaya koymaktadır. Aynı zamanda yaptığımız kayıt türün Akdeniz deniz sularından beşinci kaydını oluşturmaktadır. P. sagittarus Türkiye'nin Akdeniz kıyısındaki varlığı, bu balığın da Süveyş Kanalı yoluyla Kızıldeniz'den Akdeniz'e geçtiğinin işaretleridir. Diğer yandan mevcut kayıtlar, bu türün Akdeniz’de dağılımını giderek genişlettiğini göstermektedir., A single specimen of Priacanthus sagittarius Starnes, 1988 has been captured in the Iskenderun Bay (Konacık, Turkey), at a depth of 80 m in February 2021. This species represents the second record from Turkish waters and the first record from southeastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Besides, this species is the fifth successive record from the. The presence of P. sagittarius in the Mediterranean coast of Turkey is evidently due to migration from the Red Sea through the Suez Canal. On the other hand, available records show that this species is gradually expanding its distribution in the Mediterranean.

This study aims to determine the chemical and physical composition and antibacterial activity of glasswort. Soxhlet extraction of Salicornia europaea was performed using Hexane and analyzed by Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry. Alpha-tocopherol content was analysed by using Liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectrometry. The elemental analysis was investigated by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The crystallographic texture and composition of powder samples were determined by X-ray diffraction. The Minimum Inhibition Concentrations and inhibition zones extracts of Salicornia europaea were performed by spectrophotometric broth microdilution and disc diffusion methods, respectively, against 4 bacteria (Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumonia, Bacillus subtilis, Staphylococcus aureus) and 2 fungi (Candida albicans, Candida parapsilosis). Alpha-tocopherol quantity and oil content of Salicornia europaea were found to be 2.1 +/- 0.3mg/100 g and 15.15 %, respectively. The detected minerals were also found as Sodium 447, Magnesium 51.98, K 45.86, Ca 14.27 ppm. The highest minimum inhibition concentration was 0.9 mg/ml against Escherichia coli in methanol extract (p.0.05). The highest mean inhibition zones diameter was 3.8 mm for methanol extracts against Bacillus subtilis (p.0.05). As a result, the extract and oil of Salicornia europaea can be used as potential bioactive and antimicrobial agents for pharmaceutical and cosmetics applications.

Hydroxyapatite and associated calcium phosphate ceramic materials are commonly applied as implant resources because of their close resemblance in structure with natural bone. In the present study, the elemental composition and potential usage of pufferfish teeth were examined as natural bioceramic for dental applications. The teeth of pufferfish Lagocephalus sceleratus were removed from the fish, rinsed with deionized water, measured, and kept in the furnace at 105 degrees C. The dehydrated teeth were pulverized with the planetary ball. ICP-MS, TTX, XRD, and nanoindentation test analyzes were made on the obtained hydroxyapatite. In the ICP-MS analysis, the elemental composition of the teeth was 52% calcium, 39% phosphate, %2.5 Mn, %1.5 Mg, %1 Ti, %0.8 V, and %3.2 the others. Ca/P atomic ratio value was 1.32. The present study preliminary revealed that the use of pufferfish teeth can be a natural alternative source for biomedical and other industrial purposes since it has no economic value and is very abundant in the world marine waters. On the other hand, the required tests are mandatory to be accomplished before any human use.

WOS: 000442210300011, 30151043, Science Citation Index Expanded, Unraveling adaptive genetic variation represents, in addition to the estimate of population demographic parameters, a cornerstone for the management of aquatic natural living resources, which, in turn, represent the raw material for breeding programs. The turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) is a marine flatfish of high commercial value living on the European continental shelf. While wild populations are declining, aquaculture is flourishing in southern Europe. We evaluated the genetic structure of turbot throughout its natural distribution range (672 individuals; 20 populations) by analyzing allele frequency data from 755 single nucleotide polymorphism discovered and genotyped by double-digest RAD sequencing. The species was structured into four main regions: Baltic Sea, Atlantic Ocean, Adriatic Sea, and Black Sea, with subtle differentiation apparent at the distribution margins of the Atlantic region. Genetic diversity and effective population size estimates were highest in the Atlantic populations, the area of greatest occurrence, while turbot from other regions showed lower levels, reflecting geographical isolation and reduced abundance. Divergent selection was detected within and between the Atlantic Ocean and Baltic Sea regions, and also when comparing these two regions with the Black Sea. Evidence of parallel evolution was detected between the two low salinity regions, the Baltic and Black seas. Correlation between genetic and environmental variation indicated that temperature and salinity were probably the main environmental drivers of selection. Mining around the four genomic regions consistently inferred to be under selection identified candidate genes related to osmoregulation, growth, and resistance to diseases. The new insights are useful for the management of turbot fisheries and aquaculture by providing the baseline for evaluating the consequences of turbot releases from restocking and farming., 7th Framework Programme for research (FP7) under "Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy - KBBE", Theme 2: "Food, Agriculture and fisheries, and Biotechnologies" [FP7-KBBE-2012-6-singlestage, 311920]; Spanish Regional Government Xunta de Galicia [GRC2014/010], 7th Framework Programme for research (FP7) under "Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy - KBBE", Theme 2: "Food, Agriculture and fisheries, and Biotechnologies" Project identifier: FP7-KBBE-2012-6-singlestage, Grant/Award Number: 311920; Spanish Regional Government Xunta de Galicia, Grant/Award Number: GRC2014/010

Pinna nobilis is distributed in the northwest area of the Mediterranean and the Aegean Sea. In this study, on 9 September 2020, one specimen of Pinna nobilis, the pen shell, was observed during scuba diving at a depth of 16 m off Samandag coast (36.259444° N, 35.810111° E), the northeastern Mediterranean Sea. In this study, we observed for the first time P. nobilis from the Mediterranean Coast of Turkey, the Samandag coast. In this region, the presence of P. nobilis has never been previously recorded, and this new record confirms the presence of a new location in the Mediterranean Sea., Delici midye Pinna nobilis Akdeniz'in kuzeybatı bölgesinde ve Ege Denizi'nde dağılım göstermektedir. Bu çalışmada, 9 Eylül 2020 tarihinde, kuzeydoğu Akdeniz'deki Samandağ sahilinde (36.259444° K, 35.810111° D) 16 m derinlikte aletli dalış sırasında bir adet Pinna nobilis gözlenmiştir. Bu bölgede P. nobilis'in varlığı daha önce kaydedilmemiştir. Bu yeni kayıt, Kuzeydoğu Akdeniz'de yeni bir konumun varlığını bildirmektedir.

WOS: 000521828400016, Molecular genetics and phenotypic markers were evaluated for detecting phylogeographic difference in the populations of the Black-Sea turbot Scophthalmus maeoticus occurring in the Black Sea and the Marmara Sea. Microsatellites of nuclear DNA and the COIII region of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) were used for the genetic analyses. Morphometrics, meristics, otolith shape and otolith chemistry were applied for the phenotypic analyses. The mean number of alleles was 14.4, using five polymorphic microsatellite loci; the lowest genetic distance (0.19549) was observed between the Marmara (MS) and the West Black Sea (BS2) populations; the highest genetic distance (0.21755) was observed between the Marmara Sea population and East Black Sea (BS1) population. MIDNA analysis revealed an overall genetic diversity of 0.00148. The smallest (0.001416) genetic distance was observed between BS2 and BS1 and the highest (0.001593) was the genetic distance between BSI and MS populations. Discriminant function analysis of morphometric and meristic characters discriminated only BS1 population from the other populations, which overlapped with one another. The otolith shape analysis also supported the morphometric and meristic analyses that the BS1 population was differentiated from the other two populations., Scientific and Technological Research of TurkeyTurkiye Bilimsel ve Teknolojik Arastirma Kurumu (TUBITAK) [112O920], We are grateful to the Scientific and Technological Research of Turkey for their financial support (Project No. 112O920). The present study is the MSc thesis of S. Karan, in which COI was given instead of COIII by mistake.

This Collective Article includes records of 29 alien and cryptogenic species in the Mediterranean Sea, belonging to eight Phyla (Rhodophyta, Ochrophyta, Cnidaria, Annelida, Mollusca, Arthropoda, Echinodermata, and Chordata) and coming from 11 countries. Notes published here can be divided into three different categories: occupancy estimation for wide areas, new records for the Mediterranean Sea, and new records of species expanding within the Mediterranean Sea. The first category includes a visual survey held along the coastline of Peloponnese (Greece), which yielded records of 15 species. The second category includes the first Mediterranean records of the Coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch (Greece) and of the Arabian monocle bream Scolopsis ghanam (Tunisia). The third category includes new records for countries (Ganonema farinosum in Malta, Cassiopea andromeda in Libya, Cingulina isseli in Greece, Okenia picoensis in Italy, Callinectes sapidus in Slovenia, Charybdis cf. hellerii in Malta, Urocaridella pulchella in Cyprus, Ablennes hians and Aluterus monoceros in Lebanon, and Fistularia petimba in Greece and Lebanon), new records for MSFD areas or regional seas (Septifer cumingii in the Greek Ionian Sea and F. petimba in the Marmara Sea), and confirmation of old, doubtful, or spurious records/statements (Branchiomma luctuosum in Tunisia, Thalamita poissonii in the Saronikos Gulf, and Pterois miles in Albania). Noteworthy, the three new records of F. petimba suggest that it may soon spread further in the Mediterranean Sea, as already happened for its congeneric Fistularia commersonii. Distributional data reported here will help tracing colonization routes of alien species in the basin and may facilitate the development of mitigation measures., peer-reviewed

Sonyıllarda Akdeniz’in denizel biyoçeşitliliği hızlı bir değişim göstermektedir.Özellikle bu değişimden Türkiye’nin Akdeniz kıyıları bir hayli etkilenmektedir.2017 yılı itibariyle Türkiye’nin Akdeniz kıyılarında Hint Pasifik kökenlitoplam 43 familyaya dâhil 71 ve Atlantik kökenli 9 familyaya ait 9 tür olmaküzere toplam 80 yabancı balık türü (47 familya) bulunmaktadır. Bu türler DoğuAkdeniz’de 42 familyaya ait 69 tür ve Batı Akdeniz’de 34 familyaya ait 52 türile temsil edilmektedir. Bu çalışmada Türkiye’nin Akdeniz sahillerinde dağılımgösteren yabancı balık faunasının Doğu ve Batı Akdeniz bölgelerine göredağılımları yeniden gözden geçirilerek güncel durumları hakkında bilgilerverilmiştir., In recent years, marine biodiversity of the Mediterranean has gone through a rapid change. For example, Mediterranean coasts of southern Turkey are affected a great deal by this change. Rapid change in the biodiversity of the Mediterranean has been enhanced with the entrance of alien species from two sources; IndoPacific and Atlantic origin. By 2017, the number of Alien species established populations in the Mediterranean coast of southern Turkey has reached to 80 of which 72 belonging to 44 families is originally from Indo-Pacific and 8 belonging to 8 families is originally from Atlantic. These 80 species represent 47 families in total. These alien fish species established populations in İskenderun Bay, Mersin Bay and Antalya Bay in the northeastern Mediterranean corresponding to southern coasts of Turkey. Iskenderun Bay and Mersin Bay shelters 69 alien species belonging to 42 families, and 52 species belonging to 34 families inhabit in Antalya Bay. This study revised and determined the current status of alien fish fauna occupying northeastern Mediterranean, surrounding southern coast of Turkey with a special emphasis on Iskenderun, Mersin and Antalya Bays. The information provided here is in valuable contribution for the monitoring studies of the alien fish in the Mediterranean.

WOS: 000460285400009, One female specimen of the Smoothback Angelshark Squatina oculata was captured by a commercial trawler at a depth of 65 m on 4 November 2017 from Aydincik coast (North-eastern Mediterranean Sea, Turkey). Squatina oculata had not been reported in this part of the North-eastern Mediterranean Sea nearly for the last two decades. The captured specimen was 726 mm in total length and 3450 g in weight. Morphometric and meristic characters of the captured specimen are compared with the other Mediterranean records. Due to increasing fishing activities and habitat degradation throughout the Mediterranean Sea during the last decades, angelshark species are dramatically declined day by day. Thus, conservation status of the Smoothback Angelshark S. oculata in the Mediterranean Sea is classified as "Critically Endangered" at Global Red List by IUCN., Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Turkey [TAGEM-16/AR-GE/21], Thanks to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs Turkey (TAGEM-16/AR-GE/21) for the financial support.

WOS: 000504749700017, This paper is a collection of novel distributional records of 20 species belonging to 8 phyla (Chlorophyta, Rhodophyta, Cnidaria, Ctenophora, Annelida, Mollusca, Arthropoda and Chordata) from 11 Mediterranean countries, namely, Spain: an additional record of the Canary dentex Dentex canariensis is reported from Spain (Valencia), this is the northernmost record of this species in the Mediterranean; Algeria: the first documented record of Caulerpa chemnitzia is reported from the Algerian coast; France: the first record of the Spotted sea hare Aplysia dactylomela is reported from the eastern coast of Corsica; Italy: the first records of the Lessepsian polychaete Dorvillea similis and the alien bivalve Isognomon legumen are reported from Italian waters while additional records of Mnemiopsis leidyi in the south Adriatic are provided; Libya: the first record of an alien mollusc Crepidula fornicata is reported from Libyan waters; Malta: multiple sightings of gelatinous species Apolemia uvaria, Phacellophora camtschatica and Physophora hydrostatica are reported for the first time from Maltese waters, as well as the first tentative record of the Orange-spotted grouper Epinephelus cfr. coioides; Greece: an occurrence of a rare Bigeye thresher shark Alopias superciliosus is reported from Hellenic Ionian waters, while the first records of the alien Mertens' prawn-goby Vanderhorstia mertensi, the recently described cyclopoid copepod Oithona davisae and the alien red seaweed Asparagopsis armata are reported from the Aegean Sea. The presence of the micromollusc Euthymella colzumensis is confirmed for Greece; Cyprus: the first record of the red cornetfish Fistularia petimba is reported from Cyprus; Turkey: the first record of the alien jellyfish Marivagia stellata is reported from south-eastern Turkey; Israel: the first records of the sea nettle Chrysaora sp. in the Levant are reported., International Ocean Institute (IOI); Croatian Science Foundation (HRZZ) [IP-2016-06-5251]; Regione Autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia; Israel Society of Ecology and Environmental Sciences; GoJelly project-EU Horizon 2020 [774499], Langeneck J. and Tempesti J. are grateful to M. El-Metwally and J. Ferrario for providing Red Sea specimens of D. similis, and to M. Lezzi for his support in the preparation of permanent slides. Deidun A. and Piraino S. wish to thank Mr. Pete Bullen (www.oceanfoto.co.uk), Roy Davidson, Hans Messler, Alexander Ferrante and Lyndsey Bee for making their photographs of the three gelatinous species in caption available to the authors, as well as to the International Ocean Institute (IOI) for sponsoring the Spot the Jellyfish campaign since 2010. Thanks are also due to Andre C. Morandini (Brasil) for supporting advice on P. camtschatica identification. Deidun A. and Zava B. are indebted to the angler Romario Pace for donating the photo of the fish individual reported hereunder. Dragicevic B. and Dulcic J. are thankful to Mr. Nikola Cvitan who provided photographs and videos of the specimen as well as additional information. Their work was partly supported by the Croatian Science Foundation (HRZZ) under project IP-2016-06-5251. Tirelli V. and Goruppi A. wish to thank the citizen scientists for providing sightings and photographic material through avvistAPP (Michele Cravati, V. D., Vincenzo Frezza, S. I., R. M., S. M., I. T. and C. V.) and the Regione Autonoma Friuli Venezia Giulia for funding the NOCE di MARE project. Michailidis N. and Manitaras I. thank fishmonger George Karamanos and fisher Christos Efrem for providing the specimen and information on its catch. Edelist D., Kuplik Z., Guy-Haim T. and Angel D. thank Dror Gilat and Inbar Margulis for recording and sharing their observations, and Mark J Gibbons, Andre C Morandini and Stefano Piraino for their useful taxonomic contributions. "Medusot Baam" is funded by the Israel Society of Ecology and Environmental Sciences, as well as the GoJelly project -EU Horizon 2020 grant No 774499.

This article includes 23 new records of alien and cryptogenic species in the Mediterranean Sea, belonging to 4 Phyla (Chordata, Echinodermata, Arthropoda and Mollusca), distributed from the Alboran to the Levantine Sea. Records are reported from eight countries listed from West to East as follows: Algeria: new records of the Atlantic blue crab Callinectes sapidus; Spain: further spread and establishment of the sea slug Lamprohaminoea ovalis in continental shores; Tunisia: first record of the Atlantic Blue Crab Callinectes sapidus in the Gulf of Gabes; Italy: a new occurrence of the pufferfish Lagocephalus sceleratus in Northern Ionian waters; first record of Cephalopholis taeniops in the Ionian Sea; first record of the redlip blenny, Ophioblennius atlanticus in the Ionian Sea; Slovenia: first record of the isopod Paranthura japonica in Slovenia; Greece: first record of the molluscs Eunaticina papilla, Plocamopherus ocellatus and the fish Cheilodipterus novemstriatus; first record of the ascidian Ecteinascidia turbinata in Kriti; the long-spined sea urchin Diadema setosum in the Ionian Sea; Turkey: first record of the sea spider Ammothea hilgendorfi; the stomatopod Cloridina cf. ichneumon; the fishes Pempheris rhomboidea from the Sea of Marmara and Paranthias furcifer from the Aegean Sea; Lebanon: new records of the fishes Arothron hispidus, Rachycentron canadum, Heniochus intermedius and Acanthurus monroviae; first record of Acanthostracion polygonius. The records of Cloridina cf. ichneumon from southern Turkey and the fish Acanthostracion polygonius from Lebanon, both being the first Mediterranean records, are noteworthy.

WOS: 000456094500001, Non-native pufferfish have been a part of the Mediterranean marine ecosystem since the 1930s. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the by-catch of these species. This study aimed to compare the by-catch of pufferfish species between different types of fishing gear and to determine the monetary losses due to pufferfish on the Aegean (west) and Mediterranean (south) coasts of Turkey. A total of 467 commercial and recreational fishers (n= 244 and n=223 respectively), based in the 7 coastal cities were interviewed in the period of June - December 2017. A semi-structured questionnaire provided detailed information on by-catch amount of pufferfish in fishing gears, and economic loss caused by pufferfish. The most commonly caught pufferfish species was Lagocephalus sceleratus. The by-catch amount of pufferfish is higher on the Mediterranean coast in comparison with the Aegean coast. The highest pufferfish by-catch was recorded in purse seines and trawls on the south coasts, but in set nets on the west coasts. When seasonal changes were considered, the highest by-catch was occurred in the summer months for both commercial and recreational fisheries. Regarding the damages caused by pufferfish species in the small-scale fisheries, 92% and 90% of fishers, who fished on the south coasts, claimed that pufferfish species damage their fishing gears and fish entangled to these fishing gears, respectively. In conclusion, pufferfish species (e.g. L. me/era:us) are part of the ecosystem with their unknown quantified impacts. In fact, such information is required for fisheries management to mitigate the impacts of these species. The present study contributes to filling the gaps in this area.