On the presence of Dipturus nidarosiensis (Storm, 1881) in the Central Mediterranean area

Abstract

The Norwegian skate Dipturus nidarosiensis (Storm, 1881) has only recently been recorded in the western Mediterranean Sea along the coast of southern Sardinia, off Algeria and the Alboran Sea. The present study confirmed the presence of the species in the Central Mediterranean Sea by identifying morphometric, morphological features and molecular markers. Biological sampling was conducted from 2010 to 2016 on eight specimens collected through commercial landings, offshore observer programmes and scientific surveys in Adriatic and Ionian waters at depths between 320 and 720 m. The total lengths of the specimens (juveniles and adults) ranged from 268 to 1,422 mm, and their body weights ranged from 44.5 to 12,540.0 g. They showed morphometric features that corresponded to those of Norwegian skates in the Northeast Atlantic and the Western Mediterranean. In previous analyses, molecular data were obtained by mitochondrial COI sequences. The haplotype network showed the occurrence of a common haplotype (Hap_1) shared by the individuals from areas in the North Atlantic, Sardinian, Algerian and Spanish Mediterranean Sea areas but not South Africa. The occurrence of individuals in different stages of life (i.e., juveniles, sub-adults and adults) and sexual development (immature and mature) suggested the presence of a species with a permanent reproductive allocation in the deep waters of the Mediterranean, which was exposed to a low level of fishing exploitation. Indeed, the deep depth distribution of the species could be the reason for the absence of information about this species in onshore or offshore fishery data collection programmes and scientific surveys.

The occurrence of Norwegian skate, Dipturus nidarosiensis (Elasmobranchii: Rajiformes: Rajidae), in the Strait of Sicily, central Mediterranean

“…The record of a juvenile male confirmed the occurrence of D. nidarosiensis in the Strait of Sicily previously assumed by Massi et al (2017) on the basis of a record of one egg capsule found off Pantelleria Island. The presence of the species supports the role of ecological corridor of the Strait of Sicily in connecting organisms living in the western basin (Cannas et al 2010, Follesa et al 2012, Ramírez-Amaro et al 2017 with those distributed in the Ionian Sea (Carbonara et al 2019). The Strait of Sicily is also considered a biodiversity hotspot for cartilaginous fish in the Mediterranean Sea (Enajjar et al 2015, Bradai et al 2018, Di Lorenzo et al 2018) and this new species record strengthens the importance of this area for the conservation of this vulnerable group, as has already been stated in previous studies (Lauria et al 2015).…”

“…Some further records were reported in the same area by Follesa et al (2012). More recently, D. nidarosiensis was found also in the Ionian Sea and the Adriatic Sea (Carbonara et al 2019, Cariani et al 2017, as well as in the Alboran Sea where eight specimens were caught between 2013 and 2016 (Ramírez-Amaro et al…”

Species diversity, taxonomy and distribution of Chondrichthyes in the Mediterranean and Black Sea

“…For this nomenclatural issue, it is problematic to consider D. batis as a valid species for the Mediterranean Sea. In this sense, museum collections can provide useful support to solve some of these doubts. Conversely, D. nidarosiensis officially appeared in the Mediterranean faunistic lists only recently (Cannas et al 2010) and subsequently was confirmed by different authors (Follesa et al 2012;Massi et al 2017;Geraci et al 2019;Carbonara et al 2019) particularly for the western and central Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea. Although, it should be said that further information on its status in the Mediterranean is recommended.…”

“…However, its distribution range seems to be enlarged. Indeed, in recent times, some individuals linked to this species have also been caught in the Mediterranean Sea during research expeditions carried out between 2005(Cannas et al 2010Follesa et al 2012;Ramírez-Amaro et al 2017;Carbonara et al 2019;Geraci et al 2019). Although Cannas et al (2010) and Carbonara et al (2019) confirmed the species identification by genetics, Ebert and Stehmann (2013) suggested that individuals caught in the Mediterranean might belong to a smaller morphotype of Dipturus sp.…”

Compositional and functional profiling of the rhizosphere microbiomes of the invasive weed Ageratina adenophora and native plants

“…Its dominance can interfere with nutritional cycles, hydrological conditions, and the energy budgets of the plant-soil ecosystem, causing severe economic losses to the agricultural, forestry, and livestock industries (Xu et al, 2006;Kong et al, 2017). Thus, A. adenophora is often used as a model organism to study the possible mechanisms of plant invasion (Datta et al, 2017;Chen et al, 2019;Fang et al, 2019;Poudel et al, 2019;Zhao et al, 2019). The impact of plant soil feedback is of interest to explain the successful exotic invasion of A. adenophora (Niu et al, 2007;Poudel et al, 2019;Zhao et al, 2019).…”