Between December 2015 and December 2017 a total of 63 sea turtles were recorded as being stranded along the Algerian coast. The loggerhead sea turtle Caretta caretta was the most commonly stranded species (n = 44) (69.8%), followed by the leatherback Dermochelys coriacea (n = 18) (28.6%) and the green turtle Chelonia mydas (n = 1). There was a slight dominance of the adult size class for stranded loggerhead turtles, while, for the leatherback, late juveniles and adults prevailed. Most loggerhead turtles stranded during the summer months (July and August), whereas most leatherbacks stranded during winter. The breakdown of the strandings by region shows a slight dominance along the western and central shores for C. caretta and a clear dominance in the west for D. coriacea.
The primary cause of death was determined in 50.8% of the stranded turtles. Regarding the evidence of interactions with humans the major cause of stranding in loggerhead turtles was incidental catch by artisanal fisheries, followed by boats’ collisions. The main causes of leatherback strandings were boats’ collisions. Algerian data show that human activities affect loggerhead turtles and also prove a significant presence of the leatherback turtle on this coast.
The study of the reproduction of Diplodus vulgaris (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1817) (Pisces Sparidae) of the Algerian West coast-carried out from September 2015 to August 2016-related to 472 specimens, whose overall length ranged between 14.6 cm and 28.4 cm. The ratio of gonad weight to total weight was assessed monthly, and the evolution of the stages of sexual maturity revealed that, for D. vulgaris, the period of reproduction is between October and February with an oviposition in January. The sex ratio related to the size showed that males are dominant in the classes of small sizes (14-18 cm) and females dominate in the classes of great sizes (19-29 cm).
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