First record of the Berber ponyfish Leiognathus berbis Valenciennes, 1835 (Osteichthyes: Leiognathidae) from Syrian marine waters (Eastern Mediterranean)

Abstract

Background: Climatic changes and human activities have worked to pave the way for alien species to invade new areas far from their native habitat. The Mediterranean sea has received many invasive species (Eissa and Zaki, Procedia Environmental Sciences 4:251-259, 2011; Occhipinti-Ambrogi, Marine Pollution Bulletin 55(7):342-352, 2007), and some of these species had been recorded in the Syria coastal (Saad, Turkish Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 5:99-106, 2005). Method: One specimen of the Berber ponyfish Leiognathus berbis, with a total length of 78 mm, was caught by gillnet at a depth of 35 m, where the bottom is sandy soft, on 05 May 2016, in Syrian marine waters at Ibn Hani area (The Eastern Mediterranean Sea). Results: This study reports that Berber ponyfish Leiognathus berbis, a member of Lessepsian species, was found in Syrian marine waters and recorded for the first time there. Conclusion: This is the first record for Leiognathus berbis in the Syrian costal waters, and observations for the first time from the fishermen, There are several factors helped this specimen to arrive to this area of Mediterraean; one of these factors is ballast water.