Record of an established population of Palaemon macrodactylus Rathbun, 1902 (Decapoda, Palaemonidae) in the Mediterranean Sea: confirming a prediction

Abstract

The capture of larvae of Palaemon macrodactylus off Mallorca (Balearic Islands) has been recently reported as evidence of a potential presence of a population of this species in the Mediterranean Sea. Photos of this species, taken during dives in the Sacca di Goro (northern Adriatic) were published in the same year, but no specimen could be collected at that time. Herein, we report the capture in 2013 of numerous individuals of the oriental shrimp, including ovigerous females, both in the Sacca di Goro and in the Lagoon of Grado and Marano (northern Adriatic Sea, Italy), confirming the existence of a well-established population of this species in the Mediterranean Sea.

Tropical Shrimp Biofloc Aquaculture within Greenhouses in the Mediterranean: Preconditions, Perspectives, and a Prototype Description

“…The former is native to the Indo-West-Pacific and invaded the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal. P. macrodactylus was initially detected on the Balearic Islands in 2009 [78] and was later found up to the Northern Adriatic [79]. A remarkably successful shrimp invader in the Mediterranean Sea is Penaeus aztecus.…”

Larval morphology and DNA barcodes as valuable tools in early detection of marine invaders: a new pea crab found in European waters

“…There are cases where larvae of NIS were detected before the adults. For example, larvae of Palaemon macrodactylus Rathbun, 1902 were found in the Mediterranean in 2005 and 2010 surveys (Torres et al ., 2012), but the first adults were observed in 2012 and 2013 (Cuesta et al ., 2014). In general, the use of DNA barcoding has allowed the identification of an important number of adults (Radulovici et al ., 2009) and planktonic larval stages of different taxa (Marco-Herrero et al ., 2013).…”

The return of the Blue Crab, Callinectes sapidus Rathbun, 1896, after 70 years from its first appearance in the Gulf of Trieste, northern Adriatic Sea, Italy (Decapoda: Portunidae)

“…Globally, the second most serious threat to biodiversity is invasive species (Genovesi 2002); only habitat loss and fragmentation is more serious (Florio et al 2008). Efforts to constantly update new invasive decapod species in the Marano and Grado Lagoon, such as Palaemon macrodactylus Rathbun, 1902(Cuesta et al 2014 and Eriocheir sinensis H. Milne-Edwards, 1853 (Bettoso and Comisso 2015), are useful information for management and conservation plans. More introductions of invasive species into the Mediterranean are expected in the coming years, especially with the recent expansion of the Suez Canal.…”