Demersal fish fauna of the Sea of Marmara, Turkey was determined by bottom trawl surveys between March 2017-December 2018 at 34 stations with the monthly samplings. During the study, a total of 61 teleost and 12 cartilaginous fish species belonging to 42 families were sampled. The target, bycatch and discard rates of CPUE were determined as 13.40%, 69.64% and 16.95%, respectively. In total, 53.9% of the CPUE was stemmed from Trachurus trachurus. Mustelus mustelus, Raja clavata, Merluccius merluccius and Merlangius merlangius had the highest CPUE with a mean of 77.63, 71.86, 71.72 and 72.68 kg/km 2 , respectively. The highest biodiversity was observed in the southwestern part of the Marmara Sea. With increasing depth, the species number of the teleost fish decreased, whereas the species number of the cartilaginous fish increased. The mean CPUE values of the economical demersal fish species were lower in comparison to those reported from other regions in Turkey. Evidence suggests fish stocks with shallower distribution is under heavier threat against fishing pressure. Since commercial trawling is banned in the Sea of Marmara, beam trawl fishery can be considered as the major threat to demersal fish stocks in the region.
An ichthyoplankton survey was conducted between March 2012 and February 2013 along the Anatolian coast of the Dardanelles Strait, with the aim of describing the species composition and temporal variation of fish eggs and larvae. For this purpose, monthly samples were collected at three sites using a WP-2 plankton net equipped with 500 µm mesh during a one-year period. Biodiversity indices were calculated to understand differences in biodiversity. A total of 50 teleost fish species belonging to 25 families and 7 orders were identified. The highest species richness of fish eggs was recorded in spring, whereas the highest species richness of fish larvae – in spring and summer. On the other hand, species richness of fish eggs and larvae were at a minimum in the fall. The most dominant species recorded in the Dardanelles were
One of the economically important species is Penaeus kerathurus (Forskål, 1755), which is widespread in the Mediterranean ecosystem. This paper presents results of research on reproductive biology of Penaeus kerathurus in the Sea of Marmara. A total of 1404 specimens were dissected to determine the maturity stages, reproduction time, and length at first reproduction. The female-to-male ratio was 1:0.9. A high percentage of mature females was determined in April, May and July. Moreover, the value of the gonadosomatic index (GSI) decreased after July. The spawning period was observed between April and July, and its intensity increased in July. The carapace length at first sexual maturity was determined to be 39 mm.
The species composition and temporal variations of fish larvae in shallow waters (<20 m) of Gökçeada Island located in the North Aegean Sea were studied weekly using WP-2 plankton nets. In this study, a total of 2281 fish larvae belonging to 31 families and 55 species were sampled. The highest biomasses for families were for Clupeidae, Myctophidae, Engraulidae, and Sparidae, whereas the highest species richness for families were for Sparidae, Myctophidae, and Labridae. Sardina pilchardus larvae were the most predominant larval species with a total biomass of 8036.1 ind./1000 m 3 (55.1%). Significant differences in larval biomass were evident between the months, whereas there were no differences evident between species richness. Biomass and species richness of fish larvae were highest in the winter and summer. Compared with similar studies carried out on larger geographical areas, similar species diversity and biomass were also found in this study. It was observed that the occurrence of some larvae species that had shorter spawning duration increased with the frequent sampling interval.
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