The occurrence, distribution and biology of invasive fish species in fresh and brackish water bodies of NE Morocco

Abstract

Monitoring the presence and expansion of alien species and upgrading their biological and ecological knowledge seems crucial to mitigate their possible impact on native communities. Within inland superficial waters, alien fish represent an important threat to the biodiversity and studies on their impact on native communities have increased around the world in the last years. However, little is known about their occurrence, biology and influences in North Africa in general, and more specifically in Morocco. In the present work we aimed to: 1) investigate the presence of any native Aphanius species, especially the Mediterranean killifish Aphanius fasciatus recorded from the lower basin of the Moulouya River (NE Morocco); 2) monitor the presence and expansion of two invasive species, the eastern mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki and the mummichog Fundulus heteroclitus; and 3) contribute to the understanding of the ecological and abiotic affinities that govern the distribution of these alien fishes in North Africa. To achieve these goals, several field sampling campaigns were carried out between 2014 and 2018 across eastern Morocco, comprising the administrative Oriental Region and the Moulouya River Basin and covering an area of 119,268 km2. No native Aphanius species were found. The eastern mosquitofish has invaded the freshwater hydrosystems of the northern part of Morocco, including the study area, while the mummichog is currently limited to the brackish and salty wetlands of Lower Moulouya. Our results show that the known ranges of these two alien species have expanded. Data published through GBIF (Doi:10.15470/2qed9o)

Biodiversity Studies for Sustainable Lagoon: Thermophilic and Tropical Fish Species vs. Endemic Commercial Species at Mellah Lagoon (Mediterranean, Algeria)

“…Data were unavailable for Montenegro. Among the tropical species, Gambusia holbrookii sightings have been reported in lagoons of Algeria ( [22,23] and the present study), Tunisia and Egypt [59], Turkey [63], Greece and Albania [71], Italy [68,72], and France [73], Spain [74], Morocco [75]. Data were unavailable for Montenegro.…”

The first record of the swordtailXiphophorus helleriiHeckel, 1848 (Poeciliidae, Actinopterygii) established in the wild from Morocco

“…Aquatic ecosystems of Morocco are already suffering from big changes in their original structure due to several problems, including modifications in riparian vegetation, bank alteration, liquid and solid pollution, dams, cattle ranching and water abstraction and deviation (Mabrouki, Taybi, & Berrahou, 2017; Mabrouki, Taybi, El Alami, & Berrahou, 2019b; Taybi, Mabrouki, Legssyer, & Berrahou, 2020b). Invasive species may worsen further the health of Moroccan aquatic ecosystems (Mabrouki, Taybi, Skalli, et al, 2019; Taybi, Mabrouki, Chavanon, & Millán, 2020c, d). Several endemic fish species could co‐occur with this new invader at the downstream of the Ain Chkef park (Sebou River basin), including the Moroccan spine loach ( Cobitis maroccana Pellegrin, 1929), the micro‐endemic Moroccan freshwater blenny ( Salaria atlantica Doadrio, Perea & Yahyaoui, 2011) and several endemic Cyprinidae members (i.e.…”

The first record of the North American freshwater limpet Ferrissia californica (Mollusca, Gastropoda) in Morocco

“…However, it has been verified that the aquarium trade is the main responsible for the establishment of this invasive species into non�native areas (Boettger, 1949;Tokinova, 2012;Vecchioni et al, 2017). Ornamental aquarium pet trade starts to be� come a leading pathway for the introduction of aquatic invasive species in Morocco (Mabrouki et al, 2020;Taybi et al, 2020aTaybi et al, , 2021Taybi et al, , 2023. Perhaps, aquarists from the surrounding cities (i.e.…”