The 2020's update of marine alien species list from Turkey yielded a total of 539 species belonging to 18 taxonomic groups, 404 of which have become established in the region and 135 species are ...casual. A total of 185 new alien species have been added to the list since the previous update of 2011. The present compilation includes reports of an ascidian species (Rhodosoma turcicum) new to the marine fauna of Turkey and range extensions of six species. Among the established species, 105 species have invasive characters at least in one zoogeographic region, comprising 19% of all alien species. Mollusca ranked first in terms of the number of species (123 species), followed by Foraminifera (91 species), Pisces (80 species) and Arthropoda (79 species). The number of alien species found in seas surrounding Turkey ranged from 28 (Black Sea) to 413 (Levantine Sea). The vectoral importance of the Suez Canal diminishes when moving from south to north, accounting for 72% of species introductions in the Levantine Sea vs. only 11% of species introductions in the Black Sea. Most alien species on the coasts of Turkey were originated from the Red Sea (58%), due to the proximity of the country to the Suez Canal. Shipping activities transported 39% of alien species, mainly from the Indo-Pacific area (20%) and the Atlantic Ocean (10%). Misidentified species (such as Pterois volitans, Trachurus declivis, etc.) and species those classified as questionable or cryptogenic were omitted from the list based on new data gathered in the last decade and expert judgements. The documented impacts of invasive species on socio-economy, biodiversity and human health in the last decade as well as the legislation and management backgrounds against alien species in Turkey are presented.
Abstract The widespread sea hare species Aplysia parvula includes four genetically distinct lineages, containing a total of ten different species. While the four lineages can be differentiated by ...their external characteristics, species in each clade are often morphologically indistinguishable. A review of literature and type material revealed that several available names exist for species recognized herein: Aplysia parvula is retained for a species from the north-eastern Atlantic; A. atromarginata, A. elongata, A. nigrocincta and A. japonica are resurrected for species from the western Pacific Ocean, the Hawaiian Islands, the Indian and western Pacific Oceans, and Japan and Korea, respectively. Two new species names are introduced for animals from the eastern Pacific, and the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Mitochondrial sequences from Mediterranean and eastern Atlantic specimens identified as A. parvula, resulted to be A. punctata. However, two specimens were heterozygotes of histone H3 alleles of A. punctata and of a new Atlantic species described herein, suggesting they could be hybrids. These results contradict the hypothesis that the Mediterranean was colonized by A. parvula. If an invasion occurred, it was a limited introgression of nDNA from an Atlantic species into native A. punctata populations.
Torquigener flavimaculosus Hardy & Randall (1983) was described based on specimens collected from the Gulf of Aqaba, Gulf of Suez, and Gulf of Aden, which has then penetrated the Mediterranean Sea, ...becoming one of the most abundant invasive tetraodontids. A comparison of samples collected from the northern Levant coasts of Türkiye between 2007 and 2020 showed that morphometric and meristic characteristics do not fully match either with T. flavimaculosus, or the closely related congeneric species T. hypselogeneion and T. altipinnis. Multivariate analysis carried out by 16 morphometric and six meristic characters did not show any discrimination between the above-mentioned species and exhibited almost identical sequences in genetic analysis. The results strongly suggest that T. flavimaculosus and T. hypselogeneion are conspecific, making the former species a junior synonym of the latter.
The spotted sea hare Aplysia dactylomela Rang, 1828 is a large and conspicuous opisthobranch sea slug that since 2002 has rapidly colonized the eastern Mediterranean, establishing populations in ...numerous localities. The source of the Mediterranean populations has been the subject of debate, with two main hypotheses considered (Atlantic and Red Sea origin). A recent study on the taxonomy of A. dactylomela has shown that the spotted sea hare is a complex of at least two genetically distinct species (A. dactylomela in the Atlantic and A. argus in the Indo-Pacific), facilitating the correct identification of Mediterranean specimens by molecular means. We used sequence data from the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I gene to identify the Mediterranean individuals for the first time and to infer their origin. Our results confirmed that all the specimens collected in the Mediterranean belong to A. dactylomela and therefore have an Atlantic origin. The limited sample size does not allow identification of the dispersal pathway of A. dactylomela into the Mediterranean, but the colonization sequence is consistent with a "natural" dispersal event. This hypothesis is evaluated in light of local surface circulation patterns. Possible causes for the recent and rapid invasion of the eastern Mediterranean by A. dactylomela are discussed.
It has been accepted by many researchers that Amphistegina lobifera Larsen migrated to the Mediterranean Sea via Suez Canal like many other Indo-Pacific originated foraminifers and organisms. This ...idea was also supported in the studies performed on the Turkish Aegean and Mediterranean coast in the last ten years, due to the discovery of alien benthic foraminifers. However, during field research in the Akkuyu (Mersin) region, a rich benthic foraminifera assemblage was found in the sediment samples, in which Amphistegina lobifera Larsen was abundant. In the present study, when and how Amphistegina lobifera Larsen migrated to the Mediterranean was investigated.
Most of the Amphistegina lobifera Larsen individuals observed are found to show similar morphological characteristics with recent samples collected from Turkish coastline, which at first indicated that the individuals from Akkuyu might also be of Holocene age, but the OSL method produced dates of 227.3 ± 17.8, 87.7 ± 9.6 and 6.0 ± 0.6 ka. These ages are Middle Pleistocene, Late Pleistocene and Holocene. In one sample, aged 427.5 ± 29.4 ka, Spiroloculina antillarum d'Orbigny, which was suggested to be introduced to Mediterranean via the Suez Canal, was found together with Articulina carinata Wiesner. The presence of Spiroloculina antillarum d'Orbigny with Amphistegina lobifera Larsen together with in an other sample, aged 227.3 ± 17.8 ka, indicates that these foraminifers have been introduced to the Mediterranean in Middle Pleistocene and they might have been living in the Eastern Mediterranean since then. As a result, these age data show that Amphistegina lobifera Larsen individuals did not migrate to the eastern Mediterranean via the Suez Canal which was opened in 1869, but much earlier than that via a different natural water way connecting Indo-Pacific to the Eastern Mediterranean.
Marine or freshwater mussel species are found in large quantities around populated areas and accumulate metals in aquatic systems. Therefore, these organisms are used to monitor environmental ...pollution. Mytilus galloprovincialis is a generally accepted bioindicator of metal pollution and is used in this study. The aim of this study is to determine the changes in the environmental conditions since antiquity. M. galloprovincialis shells were used to monitor Chalcolithic pollution levels in Yarimburgaz Cave, one of the oldest settlements in Europe. Recent samples were collected from 12 stations on the coasts of the Northern Marmara Sea and the Bosphorus between May–September 2004. The environmental pollution substantially changed over the last 7500 years. The comparison of the geochemical characteristics of the environmental pollution observed in the Chalcolithic period and today revealed that pollution from both household and industrial chemicals has increased in Istanbul.
The study area covers the northern coasts of Cyprus from the Güzelyurt Gulf to the Gazimağusa Gulf. This study was carried out in order to reveal the presence of the alien foraminifera, which are ...widely distributed in the Eastern Mediterranean particularly Amphistegina lobifera in the study area, and the effects of trace elements on faunal assemblages (foraminifera, ostracod and mollusc). The bottom sediment samples were taken from eighteen different points and depths, the faunal assemblages were examined, and the sediment distribution map of the studied area was made by ICP-MS analysis and geochemical evaluations. 30 genera and 48 species of foraminifera have been identified, of which 9 species belonging to 6 genera are the alien foraminifera. These are: Spiroloculina angulosa, S. antillarum, Hauerina diversa, Coscinospira hemprichii, Peneroplis pertusus, P. planatus, Amphisorus hemprichii, Sorites orbiculus and Amphistegina lobifera. Amphistegina lobifera was observed to be abnormally abundant in most of the samples. This foraminiferal assemblage of Red Sea origin constitutes a poor assemblage compared to the alien assemblages in Turkish Mediterranean coastal areas. It has been determined that the ostracod and mollusc genera and species found in the same samples belong to the typical Mediterranean and Aegean Sea community.
A gonadotropic microsporidian parasite, Obruspora papernae gen. et sp. nov. (Microsporidia: Enterocytozoonidae), is described from Callionymus filamentosus (Teleostei: Callionymidae) in the ...Mediterranean Sea. The host, a Red Sea invasive species which entered the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal, was first collected in the Levant Basin in 1953, whereas its parasite went unobserved until 2008. Analysis of partial small subunit ribosomal gene sequences (SSU rDNA) placed the new species within the Nucleospora, Desmozoon, and Paranucleospora clade, and as it differs from each of them, it is assigned to a new genus. The development of the parasite is described, and the biological mechanisms underlying this parasite-host system are analyzed. Prevalence of infection approached 80% in female samples throughout most of the year. Males showed no signs of infection, but parasite rDNA was detected in male internal organs. The parasite-induced xenomas progressively occupied and eventually replaced much of the ovary, in some cases producing effective castration. Despite high levels of parasite infection, current trawl fishery statistics indicate that the abundance of Mediterranean populations of the host remains high. The parasite impact on the host population dynamics is unclear. Possible effects of the new microsporidian parasite on the reproductive effort of C. filamentosus and the potential role of another parasite, the ectoparasitic copepod Lernanthropus callionymicola, as an additional host in the life cycle of O. papernae, require further investigation.
A new microsporidian infecting the Mediterranean common stingray Dasyatis pastinaca (Linnaeus, 1758) is described from Iskenderun Bay, Turkey. The parasite invades the disc muscles, producing ...slender, spindle-shaped subcutaneous swellings that develop into massive, elongated, tumor-like protuberances measuring up to 11 x 4 cm. Severity of the infection may vary from light (1 or 2 small lesions) to intense, with large parts of the dorsal surface covered with lumps and protrusions. These masses contained a yellowish-white caseous substance consisting of degraded host tissue and microsporidian sporophorous vesicles, which in turn contained developing sporonts, sporoblasts and spores. The ripe spore contained a uni-nucleate sporoplasm and large posterior vacuole, and measured 3.8-4.3 x 2.6-2.8 microm. Infection prevalence was 21% in a sample of 143 host individuals examined. All the infected stingray individuals were within the weight class of 300 to 800 g (200 to 305 mm disc width). Phylogenetic analyses of rDNA sequences indicate that this microsporidian belongs to the Pleistophoridae and clusters with species of the genera Ovipleistophora Pekkarinen, Lom & Nilsen, 2002 and Heterosporis Schubert, 1969. However, the morphology, development and host differ distinctly from all reported species, including those belonging to these 2 genera, and it is thus assigned to a newly erected genus and named Dasyatispora levantinae gen. et sp. nov. This is the first record of a microsporidian infection in a batoid. It is also the first microsporidian species to be formally described from an elasmobranch.
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