New records of introduced species in the Mediterranean Sea (April 2023)

Abstract

This Collective article reports 17 introduced species and 22 new locations for these species in the Mediterranean Sea. The reports are from three different Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) subregions (Aegean-Levantine Sea, Adriatic Sea and Western Mediterranean Sea) and the Sea of Marmara and cover ten different countries. The goal of consistent and detailed reporting of introduced species is to complement the existing species inventories and serve as a basis for establishing monitoring strategies and other conservation measures. Some of the reports from this article are the first species records for the Mediterranean Sea, namely the green alga Udotea flabellum from the Aegean Sea (Turkey) and the deepbody boarfish Antigonia capros from the Balearic Sea (Spain). In addition, new records of introduced species are included for different seas, namely the moon crab Matuta victor for the Aegean Sea (Greece), the whale shark Rhincodon typus and the lionfish Pterois miles for the Alboran Sea (Spain), the almaco jack Seriola rivoliana for the Tyrrhenian Sea (Italy), and the hound needlefish Tylosurus crocodilus for the Adriatic Sea (Italy). Furthermore, reports on first country records are included: the red alga Colaconema codicola from Slovenia, the nudibranch Melibe viridis from Bosnia and Herzegovina, the lionfish Pterois miles from Montenegro, and the goldstripe sardinella Sardinella gibbosa from Syria, which also represents a second record for the Mediterranean Sea. Furthermore, the occurrence of the scleractinian coral Oculina patagonica was noted in Gulf of Lion (France). Four polychaete species, namely Leodice antennata, Timarete punctata and Branchiomma bairdi, are reported from the vermetid reef habitat and two of them (L. antennata and B. bairdi) are also recorded for the first time in Lebanon. Evidence for established populations of the Asian date mussel Arcuatula senhousia in the Sea of Marmara (Turkey) and the rayed pearl oyster Pinctada radiata around the island of Sardinia (Italy) is provided.

A Systematic Analysis of the Mediterranean Sea (IHO Sea Area) in the WRiMS Database

“…Moreover, understanding and knowing the pathways of introduction is crucial for controlling and minimizing the rate of introduction [32], as once established, removing species from the new environment is often difficult or impossible [33]. While determining the pathway of introduction can be challenging, detailed records of new or introduced NNS can be valuable [34].…”

“…Some authors refer to the Mediterranean region as a hotspot of bioinvasion [41,42] due to high invasion rate [43]. The literature reports that around 1000 non-native species have been introduced [8,43], half of which are classified as invasive species [43,44] with an increase in introduced and establish NNS [34,45,46] In the period of two years (2017-2019), 23 newly introduced and already established species are recorded [45]. The most common vector for introduction into the Mediterranean is shipping, followed by the aquarium trade, the Suez Canal [8,45], and, as a secondary vector, natural dispersion [34,45].…”

“…The literature reports that around 1000 non-native species have been introduced [8,43], half of which are classified as invasive species [43,44] with an increase in introduced and establish NNS [34,45,46] In the period of two years (2017-2019), 23 newly introduced and already established species are recorded [45]. The most common vector for introduction into the Mediterranean is shipping, followed by the aquarium trade, the Suez Canal [8,45], and, as a secondary vector, natural dispersion [34,45]. Although there are many publications on NNS in the Mediterranean, some authors report gaps in knowledge regarding their impact [47] and incomplete data [7,48,49] which may lead to inadequate management [7,47].…”

Decoding the spread of non-indigenous fishes in the Mediterranean Sea

“…In the same context, a similar work of habitat niche modelling was carried out for P. miles and stated that the Adriatic and Alboran Seas constitute unfavorable habitats for the spread and invasion of lionfish 39 . Unfortunately, the aforementioned statement was disproved, as the species was sighted in both regions less than 3 years after the publication 42 , 43 . Therefore, it is imperative that the development and implementation of predictive distributional models should always be under continuous and rigorous re-evaluation.…”

Validated Inventories of Non-Indigenous Species (NIS) for the Mediterranean Sea as Tools for Regional Policy and Patterns of NIS Spread

“…As the proliferation of Lessepsian species continued, species such as Sepioteuthis lessoniana Férussac [in Lesson], 1831, Biuve fulvipunctata (Baba, 1938), Lamprohaminoea ovalis (Pease, 1868), Conomurex persicus (Swainson, 1821) had already entered the Adriatic, exhibiting their northernmost records between 2016 and 2019 [5]. The lionfish Pterois miles (Bennett, 1828) was first reported in the southern Adriatic in 2019 [123] but was recently recorded as far north as Croatia in the middle Adriatic [124] and as far west as the Alboran Sea in 2022 [125]. Winter isotherms of 14 • C and 15 • C, considered important physiological barriers for Mediterranean biogeography [126], have already shifted northwards and westwards and will continue to do so in the future [127], as the overall sea warming trend is expected to continue throughout the 21st century [122].…”