Biological invasions are one of the main global threats to biodiversity in terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems worldwide, requiring effective inventorying and monitoring programs. Here, we present an updated list of non-indigenous species in French marine and transitional waters. Focused on eukaryote pluricellular species found throughout the three metropolitan French marine regions (Western Mediterranean Sea, Bay of Biscay and the Northern Seas), a total of 342 non-indigenous, including 42 cryptogenic, species are listed as having been introduced since the 13th century. The majority of the species originated from the temperate Northern Pacific. They mainly arrived through both ballast and hull fouling and also are associated with shellfish farming activities. Most of them have been introduced since the 1970s, a time when maritime and aquaculture trade intensified. Despite important human-aided opportunities for species transfer between the three marine regions (for instance, via recreational boating or aquaculture transfers), only a third of these NIS are common to all regions, as expected due to their environmental specificities.
This paper is the conclusion of the “Spaghetti Project” aiming to revise French species of Terebellidae sensu lato (s.l.) belonging to the five families: Polycirridae, Telothelepodidae, Terebellidae sensu stricto (s.s.), Thelepodidae and Trichobranchidae. During this project, 41 species were observed, 31 of them new for science: eight species of Polycirridae, eleven species of Terebellidae s.s., three species of Thelepodidae and nine species of Trichobranchidae. We provide a comprehensive key for all European species of terebellids with a focus on the important diagnostic characters for each family. Finally, we discuss issues on taxonomy, biodiversity and cryptic and pseudo-cryptic species of polychaetes in European waters, based on results obtained during this project.
The spatial and temporal distribution, abundance, and structure of isopod assemblages in Bizerte Lagoon (SW Mediterranean Sea) were studied at 22 stations selected from seagrass and macroalgae sampled during four seasons in 2017. A total of 6808 individuals and 17 species of isopods belonging to 5 suborders, 7 families and 12 genera were identified. Six new species were recorded on Tunisian coasts. In addition, and compared to previous studies, nine isopod species were collected for the first time in this lagoon. Analysis of the trophic structure revealed that most stations are strongly dominated by herbivore-deposit feeders (78.3%), followed by deposit-suspension feeders (13.6%) and carnivores (8.01%). Three isopod assemblages were identified (G1, G2 and G3). The distribution of isopod assemblages is influenced by the nature and structure of the substrates. The seasonal variations in the isopod community patterns at 22 stations showed maximum abundance and diversity during spring, whereas the lowest ones were recorded during winter.
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