record of the bluespotted cornetfish fistularia commersonii ruppell 1838 in the ligurian sea nw mediterranean

The record of one adult female of the bluespotted cornetfish Fistularia commersonii Ruppell, 1838, caught using trawl nets in coastal waters near Sanremo, Western Ligurian Sea, in October 2007 is reported. This record confirms the rapid spread of the species and suggests a possible fast expansion toward French and Spanish waters by means of the Western Mediterranean Northern Current. Previous records in Italian waters apparently indicate a pioneer phase of colonization by adult fish and a stabilized phase, with adult and young fish, four years later

Novi nalaz velikookog psa lisice, Alopias superciliosus Lowe, 1841, u sjeverozapadnom Sredozemlju s pregledom svih dosadašnjih nalaza u Sredozemlju

On 9th September 2015 the head of a shark belonging to the genus Alopias, was landed at Camogli harbour in the Ligurian Sea (North Western Mediterranean). The specimen has been caught 16 miles far from the coast (44° 06’ N, 008° 57’ E) as by-catch of the mesopelagic swordfish longline, but only the head was recovered, due to the predatory/scavenging activity by other shark specimens. The specimen was a female of big-eye thresher shark Alopias superciliosus a highly migratory species worldwide distributed in tropical and temperate waters but rarely caught in the Mediterranean Sea. The present record is the northenmost reported for this species in the Mediterranean area and the sixth in Italian waters.Dana 9. rujna 2015. godine pronađena je glava morskog psa roda Alopias u luci Camogli na Ligurskom moru (sjeverozapadni Mediteran). Primjerak glave je ulovljen 16 milja daleko od obale (44 ° 06 ‘N, 008 ° 57’ E) tijekom lova na sabljarke mezopelagičnim parangalom, te je zbog grabežljivosti i uklanjanja drugih primjeraka morskih pasa, utvrđena samo glava. Primjerak glave je pripadao ženki morskog psa Alopias superciliosus, koji spada u visoko migratorne vrste rasprostranjene širom svijeta u tropskim i umjerenim vodama, no rijetko su ulovljene u Sredozemnom moru. Ovaj je nalaz najsjeverniji za ovu vrstu u Sredozemlju i ujedno je šesti nalaz za talijanske vode

First data on plastic ingestion by blue sharks (Prionace glauca) from the Ligurian Sea (North-Western Mediterranean Sea)

Few studies have focused so far on plastic ingestion by sharks in the Mediterranean Sea. The aim of this paper was to determine, for the first time, the plastic litter ingested by blue sharks (Prionace glauca), categorized as \u201cCritically Endangered\u201d in the Mediterranean Sea by IUCN, caught in the Pelagos Sanctuary SPAMI (North-Western Mediterranean Sea). The analysis of the stomach contents was performed following the MSFD Descriptor 10 standard protocol implemented with FT-IR spectroscopy technique. The results showed that 25.26% of sharks ingested plastic debris of wide scale of sizes from microplastics (<5 mm) to macroplastics (>25 mm). The polyethylene sheetlike user plastics, widely used as packaging material, are the most ingested debris. This research raises a warning alarm on the impact of plastic debris on a threatened species, with a key role in the food web, and adds important information for futures mitigation actions

ANOTHER PECULIAR SITUATION FOR YOY OF BLUEFIN TUNA (THUNNUS THYNNUS) IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA IN 2016

The possible effects of the hottest temperatures recorded in 2016 (the hottest so far) on the bluefin tuna reproductive biology have been discussed by the SCRS in the past, but the situation in 2016 was very different. After collecting some detailed samples and data about the presence of YOY in various parts of the Mediterranean Sea, an unusual situation can be observed, showing different size-at-time by area in late summer-fall 2016, possibly mirroring early, late, fractioned and continued spawnings and different growth rates. These fish might result in future problems for age readings and ALK at least for the juveniles of bluefin tunas born in 2016. This paper provides the growth curves for the many cohorts of bluefin tuna YOY which have been detected and that were born in 2016

UPDATE ON THE SATELLITE TAGGING OF ATLANTIC AND MEDITERRANEAN SWORDFISH

This paper provides an update of the study on habitat use for swordfish, developed within the working plan of the Swordfish Species Group of ICCAT. A total of 26 miniPAT tags have been deployed so far in the North (n=13) and South Atlantic (n=9) and the Mediterranean (n=4). Data from eight tags was analysed for horizontal and vertical habitat use. These preliminary results showed swordfish moved in several directions, travelling considerable distances in both the North and South stocks. Swordfish spent most of the daytime in deeper waters with a mean of 540.8 m, being closer to the surface during nighttime (mean=78.3 m). The deepest dive recorded was of 1480 m. Regarding temperature, swordfish inhabited waters with temperatures ranging from 3.9ºC to 30.5ºC with a mean of 11.3ºC during daytime and 21.7ºC during nighttime. The main plan for the next phase of the project is to continue the tag deployment during 2022 in several regions of the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Currently 11 tags are with the participating CPCs and nine tags are still to be attributed.En prens

Multidisciplinary studies on a sick-leader syndrome-associated mass stranding of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) along the Adriatic coast of Italy

Mass strandings of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) are rare in the Mediterranean Sea. Nevertheless, in 2014 a pod of 7 specimens stranded alive along the Italian coast of the Central Adriatic Sea: 3 individuals died on the beach after a few hours due to internal damages induced by prolonged recumbency; the remaining 4 whales were refloated after great efforts. All the dead animals were genetically related females; one was pregnant. All the animals were infected by dolphin morbillivirus (DMV) and the pregnant whale was also affected by a severe nephropathy due to a large kidney stone. Other analyses ruled out other possible relevant factors related to weather conditions or human activities. The results of multidisciplinary post-mortem analyses revealed that the 7 sperm whales entered the Adriatic Sea encountering adverse weather conditions and then kept heading northward following the pregnant but sick leader of the pod, thereby reaching the stranding site. DMV infection most likely played a crucial role in impairing the health condition and orientation abilities of the whales. They did not steer back towards deeper waters, but eventually stranded along the Central Adriatic Sea coastline, a real trap for sperm whales

Genetic differentiation and phylogeography of Mediterranean-North Eastern Atlantic blue shark (Prionace glauca, L. 1758) using mitochondrial DNA: Panmixia or complex stock structure?

Background The blue shark (Prionace glauca, Linnaeus 1758) is one of the most abundant epipelagic shark inhabiting all the oceans except the poles, including the Mediterranean Sea, but its genetic structure has not been confirmed at basin and interoceanic distances. Past tagging programs in the Atlantic Ocean failed to find evidence of migration of blue sharks between the Mediterranean and the adjacent Atlantic, despite the extreme vagility of the species. Although the high rate of by-catch in the Mediterranean basin, to date no genetic study on Mediterranean blue shark was carried out, which constitutes a significant knowledge gap, considering that this population is classified as “Critically Endangered”, unlike its open-ocean counterpart. Methods Blue shark phylogeography and demography in the Mediterranean Sea and North-Eastern Atlantic Ocean were inferred using two mitochondrial genes (Cytb and control region) amplified from 207 and 170 individuals respectively, collected from six localities across the Mediterranean and two from the North-Eastern Atlantic. Results Although no obvious pattern of geographical differentiation was apparent from the haplotype network, Φst analyses indicated significant genetic structure among four geographical groups. Demographic analyses suggest that these populations have experienced a constant population expansion in the last 0.4–0.1 million of years. Discussion The weak, but significant, differences in Mediterranean and adjacent North-eastern Atlantic blue sharks revealed a complex phylogeographic structure, which appears to reject the assumption of panmixia across the study area, but also supports a certain degree of population connectivity across the Strait of Gibraltar, despite the lack of evidence of migratory movements observed by tagging data. Analyses of spatial genetic structure in relation to sex-ratio and size could indicate some level of sex/stage biased migratory behaviour

Report of the ICCAT GBYP international workshop on Atlantic bluefin tuna growth

In the last Atlantic bluefin tuna assessment, an age-length database coming from direct ageing was presented for the first time. It was observed that otolith age estimates for fish younger than 8 years old had a smaller size at age compared to spine (first dorsal fin radius) age estimates. This difference, although small, was enough to misallocate the year class. This misallocation was solved when introducing a vector of bias corrected aged otoliths based on paired otolithspine samples. We have identified two possible causes for over-estimating age in the otolith agelength data: the current age adjustment criterion (to convert the bands counting into ages) and a reading bias in age estimations from some laboratories. Otolith preparation and reading protocols have been reviewed. The edge type and marginal increment analysis showed that the formation of opaque zones would seem likely to occur primarily between December through to June, contrary to what was thought until now, for which a new criterion for age adjustment has been proposed

MEDLEM database, a data collection on large Elasmobranchs in the Mediterranean and Black seas

The Mediterranean Large Elasmobranchs Monitoring (MEDLEM) database contains more than 3,000 records (with more than 4,000 individuals) of large elasmobranch species from 21 different countries around the Mediterranean and Black seas, observed from 1666 to 2017. The principal species included in the archive are the devil ray (1,868 individuals), the basking shark (935 individuals), the blue shark (622 individuals), and the great white shark (342 individuals). In the last decades, other species such as the thresher shark (187 individuals), the shortfin mako (180 individuals), and the spiny butterfly ray (138) were reported with increasing frequency. This was possibly due to increased public awareness on the conservation status of sharks, and the consequent development of new monitoring programs. MEDLEM does not have homogeneous reporting coverage throughout the Mediterranean and Black seas and it should be considered as a database of observed species presence. Scientific monitoring efforts in the south-eastern Mediterranean and Black seas are generally lower than in the northern sectors and the absence of some species in our database does not imply their actual absence in these regions. However,the available data allowed us to analyse the frequency and spatial distribution of records, the size frequencies for a few selected species, the overall area coverage, and which species are involved as bycatch by different fishing gears.S

Sometimes Sperm Whales (Physeter macrocephalus) Cannot Find Their Way Back to the High Seas: A Multidisciplinary Study on a Mass Stranding

BACKGROUND: Mass strandings of sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) remain peculiar and rather unexplained events, which rarely occur in the Mediterranean Sea. Solar cycles and related changes in the geomagnetic field, variations in water temperature and weather conditions, coast geographical features and human activities have been proposed as possible causes. In December 2009, a pod of seven male sperm whales stranded along the Adriatic coast of Southern Italy. This is the sixth instance from 1555 in this basin. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Complete necropsies were performed on three whales whose bodies were in good condition, carrying out on sampled tissues histopathology, virology, bacteriology, parasitology, and screening of veins looking for gas emboli. Furthermore, samples for age determination, genetic studies, gastric content evaluation, stable isotopes and toxicology were taken from all the seven specimens. The animals were part of the same group and determined by genetic and photo-identification to be part of the Mediterranean population. Causes of death did not include biological agents, or the "gas and fat embolic syndrome", associated with direct sonar exposure. Environmental pollutant tissue concentrations were relatively high, in particular organochlorinated xenobiotics. Gastric content and morphologic tissue examinations showed a prolonged starvation, which likely caused, at its turn, the mobilization of lipophilic contaminants from the adipose tissue. Chemical compounds subsequently entered the blood circulation and may have impaired immune and nervous functions. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: A multi-factorial cause underlying this sperm whales' mass stranding is proposed herein based upon the results of postmortem investigations as well as of the detailed analyses of the geographical and historical background. The seven sperm whales took the same "wrong way" into the Adriatic Sea, a potentially dangerous trap for Mediterranean sperm whales. Seismic surveys should be also regarded as potential co-factors, even if no evidence of direct impact has been detected