J. Black Sea/Mediterranean Environment Vol. 26, No. 2: 203-222 (2020)

RESEARCH ARTICLE

Preliminary results of the diversity and abundance of ichthyoplankton for winter and spring seasons in the northwestern Levant coast, the eastern

Sinan Mavruk1*, Elif Özgür Özbek2, Şeyma Merve Kaymaz Mühling2

ORCID IDs: S.M. 0000-0003-1958-0634; E.Ö.Ö. 0000-0001-5699-7565; Ş.M.K.M. 0000-0002-1936-0626.

1 Fisheries Faculty, Çukurova University, 01330, Balcalı, Adana, 2Turkish Marine Research Foundation (TUDAV), P.O. Box: 10, Beykoz, , TURKEY

*Corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract

The northwestern part of the Levant Basin comprises important marine habitats such as Special Environmental Protected Areas (SEPA) including no-take zones. This preliminary study is the first to investigate the ichthyoplankton of the northwestern coasts of Levant Basin with particular emphasis on the contribution of Kaş-Kekova SEPA. Ichthyoplankton samples were collected at five stations off Kemer, Adrasan, , Kekova, and Kaş in December 2018 and May 2019. A total of 82 taxa belonging 33 families and nine orders were identified. The richness and total egg abundance were significantly higher in May (61 species; 184 egg m-2) than in December (23 species; 42 egg m-2). A significantly higher number of eggs were found in Kaş-Kekova SEPA compared to the other regions in both seasons. In May, the abundance of Mullus barbatus eggs reached up to 71 eggs m-2 in Kekova station, showing that SEPA may provide shelter for a large spawning aggregation. Additionally, early-life stages of vulnerable Sciaena umbra and data-deficient Synapturichtys kleini were detected in the SEPA. Moreover, there was no statistically significant difference between the intensity of Lessepsian fish encountered inside (4.22 eggs m-2) and outside (5.29 eggs m-2) of the SEPA. In conclusion, results indicate that the Kaş-Kekova SEPA has important potential for the conservation of many species, however its contribution to the reproduction of invasive fish requires particular attention in further studies.

Keywords: Fish egg, fish larvae, SEPA, the eastern Mediterranean, Kaş-Kekova

Received: 07.07.2020, Accepted: 28.08.2020

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Introduction

Most teleost fish produce planktonic eggs and larvae, although they inhabit various marine habitats. These specimens on planktonic life stages are called ichthyoplankton until they settle on the ground or gain active swimming abilities (Russell 1976). The knowledge of the diversity of ichthyoplankton assemblages provides a unique opportunity to explore fish biodiversity that belongs to different habitats, some of which is challenging to collect samples (Govoni 2005; Granata et al. 2010). In addition, the presence of ichthyoplankton can reveal significant information about the spawning of fish populations (Limouzy-Paris et al. 1994; Lo et al. 2009).

The knowledge of ichthyoplankton assemblages in the Levant Sea is largely based on studies performed in the area between the Gulf of Iskenderun and (Ak Orek and Mavruk 2016 and reference therein). However, no study exists beyond Antalya Bay to the best of our knowledge. In the eastern Mediterranean, ichthyoplankton assemblages reveal clear seasonal patterns that indicate increased spawning activities toward the end of spring (Ak 2004; Banbul 2014; Mavruk et al. 2018). The eggs and larvae of small pelagics and shelf dwellers dominate near-coastal areas (Avsar and Mavruk 2011). Although larval mesopelagics rarely exist within the shelf, they are dominant in off-shore areas (Uysal et al. 2008; Oray et al. 2010; Çoker and Cihangir 2015).

The northwestern part of the Levant Basin - from Kemer to Fethiye villages - has a narrow continental shelf (Populus et al. 2017) and is comprised of important oceanic and neritic marine habitats, some of which have been declared as Special Environmental Protected Areas (SEPA; Anonymous 2019). Those are Finike Seamount (Öztürk et al. 2012) and Kaş-Kekova SEPAs. The Kaş-Kekova SEPA covers approximately 81 km length on the coast and 15,762 ha marine area (Güçlüsoy 2016). It has a management plan that limits human impacts via closed zones to fishery (Güçlüsoy 2016; Official Gazette 2016) and recreational activities (Akça et al. 2014). After no-take zones were declared, significant recovery was observed in the stocks of economically important fish species such as sea breams and groupers (Arda and Yokeş 2014; Güçlüsoy 2016).

No-take zones have considerable potential for improving egg production, thus contributing to the recruitment of commercial species in the Cabrera Archipelago (Crec’Hriou et al. 2010), the Medes Islands (Lopez-Sanz et al. 2009) and two SEPAs adjacent to Kaş-Kekova, Datça-Bozburun (Okuş et al. 2007) and Gökova (Yuksek et al. 2007). Usually, this enrichment is not limited to within the boundaries of no-take zones, but rather creates a spillover effect via the emigration of adults or juveniles or passive transport of eggs and larvae (Rowley 1994). However, there is no direct evidence of spillover in Kaş-Kekova SEPA.

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The eastern Mediterranean has been documented as the most invaded marine area throughout the world due to the Suez Canal intruders from the Indo-Pacific region (Mavruk and Avsar 2008; Bilecenoglu 2010) that are called Lessepsians (Por 1978). Belmaker et al. (2009) reported that 0.71 new teleost fish species are added to the Mediterranean ichthyofauna each year based on their model. According to the local fishers’ perceptions, invasive species are the most important reason for the decreasing of fish populations in the Kaş-Kekova SEPA (Giakoumi et al. 2019). Moreover, the function of marine protected areas is questioned with regard to also providing shelter for Lessepsian fishes in the eastern Mediterranean (Galil et al. 2017). Nevertheless, no difference in Lessepsian fish abundance has been detected inside and outside of Kaş-Kekova SEPA (Giakoumi et al. 2019). However, there is generally a lack of information about possible differences in terms of egg production of Lessepsian fish between inside and outside a marine protected area.

The purpose of this preliminary study was to establish baseline data on the coastal ichthyoplankton assemblages of the northwestern Levant basin to fill the knowledge gap about the area. We also discuss the contribution of the Kaş- Kekova SEPA to the reproduction of commercial, threatened, and non-indigenous species.

Materials and Methods

Samplings were performed at five stations located in the coastal zones of Kemer, Adrasan, Finike, Kekova and Kaş (Figure 1) in December 2018 and May 2019.

TURKEY

36.6 Gökova Bay skenderun Bay TURKEY Kemer Antalya Bay Mersin Bay

Eastern Mediterranean 36.4

Adrasan

36.2 Finike

Kekova Eastern Mediterranean Ka

36.0 29.6 30.0 30.4 Figure 1. Map of the study area and sampling stations. Shaded area shows Kaş-Kekova Special Environmental Protected Area.

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Kekova and Kaş stations are in the Special Environmental Protected Area whereas the others are intensely exposed to tourism and fisheries activities. The details of stations are given in Table 1. Samples were collected with 10-minute horizontal tows from the surface and vertical tows from 20 m to the surface using a WP-2 plankton net with a 57 cm frame diameter and 300 µm mesh size. After samples were taken, they were immediately washed in 100 ml containers and fixed in 4% formaldehyde borax solution. At each station, the basic physical (temperature and Secchi depth) and chemical (salinity, dissolved oxygen, and pH) properties of sea-surface water were measured using MRC sonde and Secchi disk (30 cm) simultaneously with samplings.

The ichthyoplankton samples were sorted from the zooplankton and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. Principle references used for identifications were Lo-Bianco (1956), Mater and Çoker (2004), Leis and Trinski. (1989), Okiyama (1988) and Richards (2006). After taxonomic analyses, egg and larval abundance (individuals per m2 surface area) values were calculated from the vertical tows.

To define the number of species present in the sampling domain, the first-order jackknife estimation of the maximum richness (Heltshe and Forrester 1983; Hortal et al. 2006) and its 95% confidence intervals were calculated using the presence/absence matrix pooled from all available data, the eggs and larvae of the vertical and horizontal tows. Calculations were performed using the following equation in R library “SPECIES” (R Core Team, 2019; Wang, 2011);

$ , !" = ! + %(−1)*+, + . / !"#$ %&'() - * *-, where !"!"#$ is the jackknife estimate of the maximum species richness, Sobs-i is the observed number of species in the sample i; k is the order of the estimator; nj is the number of distinct species observed only in j pieces of stations.

Log-normal average abundance values were reported because the distribution of abundance is highly skewed. The significance of changes of total richness, total egg and larval abundance, and larval Lessepsian fish abundance values between samplings (December and May) and areas (inside and outside the SEPA) were tested using generalized linear models (GLM) with quasi-Poisson error distribution and logarithmic link function (Zuur et al. 2007). The null hypotheses were “there is no difference between samplings” and “there is no difference within and outside of SEPA” in terms of total richness and abundance. All data analysis and visualization procedures were performed using R Language and Environment for Statistical Computing (R Core Team 2019) and “ggplot2” library (Wickham 2009).

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Results

Environmental Conditions During the study, the sea surface temperature was measured as 18.9–23.9°C with average values of 20.4 ± 0.9 (±standard deviation) and 22.4 ± 1.2°C for winter and spring, respectively. Salinity ranged 37.0–37.2 ppt with average 37.1 ± 0.1 ppt for both seasons. Dissolved oxygen values were between 4.1 and 8.5 mg/l. The seasonal average values of dissolved oxygen were calculated as 6.3 ± 1.5 and 7.3 ± 0.8 mg/l for winter and spring, respectively. Sea surface pH values were in the range 8.0–8.2 with an average value of 8.1 for both seasons. The standard deviation was 0.1 in winter and 0.03 in spring. The Secchi depth of stations was measured between 3.5–30.0 m during the study period and the seasonal average values were 15.0 ± 9.6 and 18.3 ± 3.8 m for winter and spring, respectively (Table 1).

Diversity and Abundance of Ichthyoplankton During the study, a total of 82 taxa belonging to 33 families and nine orders were identified. The first-order jackknife estimate of the maximum species richness was 134 ± 20 taxa (±95% confidence intervals, CI) for the overall study. While 44 ichthyoplanktonic taxa could be identified at a species level, the identification of 33 taxa was limited at a genus or family level. Additionally, five taxa could not be identified; these were named as morphotypes (UI_E1, etc.). The identified taxa were comprised of 57 native and seven non-native species. In the context of the study, 51 of the detected taxa had economic importance for the local fishery. Eight species of porgies (Sparidae) and jacks (Carangidae), six species of mullets (Mugilidae), four species of groupers and combers (Serranidae), and four species of goat fishes (Mullidae) were detected as spawning in the western coasts of Antalya (S1). The abundance of sampled species and photographs of some specimens are presented in Supplementary 2 and 3, respectively.

Species richness was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in spring with 61 species, whereas the early life stages of 23 species were detected in winter (Table 2, Figure 2). The first-order jackknife estimates of the maximum species richness were calculated as 41 ± 12 and 95 ± 16 (±95%CI) taxa for the winter and spring seasons, respectively. Two species, Saurida lessepsianus and Serranus scriba, were collected in both seasons. Spatial changes of richness were not found to be significant and were thus dropped from the model (p > 0.05).

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Table 1. Locations, sampling dates, and environmental conditions for the sampling stations

Station S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 Location Kemer Adrasan Finike Kekova Ka Latitude ( North) 36.599 36.303 36.274 36.183 36.141 Longitude ( East) 30.586 30.472 30.151 29.857 29.677 Bottom Depth (m) 20 19 20 65 35 Winter 5.12.2018 9.12.2018 9.12.2018 7.12.2018 8.12.2018 Sampling Date Spring 24.05.2019 25.05.2019 26.05.2019 26.05.2019 27.05.2019 Winter 18.9 20.5 20.5 21.0 21.2 Temperature (C) Spring 23.9 23.3 22.0 20.9 21.8 Winter 37.2 37.1 37.2 37.0 37.0 Salinity (ppt) Spring 37.2 37.1 37.2 37.0 37.0 Winter 6.6 7.7 6.6 6.6 4.1 Dissolved Oxygen (mg/l) Spring 6.9 8.5 7.3 6.4 7.4 Winter 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.2 8.2 pH Spring 8.1 8.1 8.1 8.1 8.2 Winter 3.5 14.0 12.0 15.5 30.0 Secchi Depth (m) Spring 21.0 19.0 12.5 17.0 22.0

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Table 2. Details of quasi-Poisson generalized linear models fitted for the total number of species per station (N. of Spec.) and egg abundance per m2 surface area

Model Details: log(N. of Spec.) ~ Sampling Family Scale Null Dev. Res. Dev. aPseudo-R² Quasipoisson 2.32 70.744 20.223 0.71 Coefficients Estimate Std. Error t value P(>|t|) Significance Intercept 1.825 0.274 6.672 <0.001 *** Sampling = May 1.302 0.308 4.222 0.003 ** Model Details: log(egg m-2) ~ Sampling + inSEPA Family Scale Null Dev. Res. Dev. aPseudo-R² Quasipoisson 8.55 542.301 67.107 0.88 Coefficients Estimate Std. Error t value P(>|t|) Significance Intercept 2.398 0.347 6.912 <0.001 *** bin SEPA = TRUE 0.916 0.243 3.764 0.007 ** Sampling = May 1.792 0.337 5.321 0.001 ** ***: p<0.001 **: p<0.01, aResidual deviance (Res. Dev.)-based Pseudo-R² measures were reported. bSEPA: Special Environmental Protected Area

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In the study, a total of 1,909 ichthyoplankters were sampled, 1,771 of which were in embryonic and 138 of which were in larval stages. The detected maximum abundance values were 184 eggs m-2 (May, Kekova) and 42 larvae m-2 (May, Adrasan). The log-normal average abundances were 11 ± 4 eggs m-2 (± standard deviation) and 5 ± 5 larvae m-2 in December, and 94 ± 2 egg m-2 and 12 ± 5 larvae m-2 in May. Egg abundance significantly increased in May. In addition, a significantly higher number of eggs were detected at the stations in Kaş and Kekova, which are included in the SEPA (P< 0.01; Figure 2-b). However, spatial or temporal variations of total larval abundance (Figure 2-c) and larval Lessepsian fish abundance were not found to be significant in this study (P > 0.05). In addition, there was no significant difference between the abundance of Lessepsian fish collected in (4.22 eggs m-2) and outside (5.29 eggs m-2) of the SEPA (P > 0.05).

Red mullet, Mullus barbatus, was the most dominant species among the egg stages in spring (Figure 3). Its abundance reached up to 71 eggs m-2 at Kekova station in May (Figure 2-d). Additionally, the early life stages of two threatened species; near-threatened Sciaena umbra and data-deficient Synapturichtys kleini, were sampled at the Kaş and Kekova stations in May.

a) b) Season Kemer Season Kemer a December a December 36.6 36.6 a May a May 103 2 30 0

36.4 Adrasan 36.4 Adrasan Finike Finike 31 50 Kekova 3 Kekova 18 Ka 9 12 Ka 7 53 36.2 36.2 21 19 9 8 42 184 22 Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean 36.0 36.0 138

29.6 30.0 30.4 29.6 30.0 30.4 c) d) Season Kemer Stage Kemer a December a Egg 36.6 36.6 a May a Larvae 0 0 32 0

36.4 Adrasan 36.4 Adrasan Finike Finike 42 0 Kekova 0 Kekova 0 Ka 11 4 Ka 0 0 36.2 36.2 7 4 11 4 71 39 0 4 Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean 36.0 36.0

29.6 30.0 30.4 29.6 30.0 30.4

Figure 2. The total number of observed species (a), total abundance (individual m-2) of eggs (b) and larvae (c) in December (white labels) and May (yellow labels). The abundance (individual m-2) of Mullus barbatus eggs (yellow labels) and larvae (green labels) (d). The size of labels is proportional to the values.

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Winter Spring

100 M_bar

M_bar Spa_L1 H_hyg

75 S_cab Sa_aur Ser_sp

G_ar C_cro D_hol S_cab D_ann 50 X_nov Spa_L2 Sca_L1 Cal_E1 Sym_L1

% Abundance % S_aur C_jul Gob_L2 D_raf S_sau C_aur Car_E2 25 E_gol UI_E4 L_pus Others Car_E1 Mug_L1 Others S_les Others Others 0

Egg Larvae Egg Larvae Figure 3. Species composition of egg and larval stages in winter and spring samplings. (The proportional abundance values represent the average of percentages in vertical and horizontal tows. G_ar: Gadiculus argenteus, Car_E1: Carangidae sp. E1, S_les: Saurida lessepsianus, H_hyg: Hygophum hygomii, D_hol: Diaphus holti, Sca_L1: Scaridae sp. L1, S_aur: Sparus aurata, D_raf: Diaphus rafinesquii, C_aur: Chelon auratus, E_gol: Etrumeus golanii, L_pus: Lampanyctus pusillus, Mug_L1: Mugilidae sp. L1, M_bar: Mullus barbatus, Ser_sp: Serranus spp., S_cab: Serranus cabrilla, X_nov: Xyrichtys novacula, Cal_E1: Callionymidae sp. E1, C_jul: Coris julis, S_sau: Synodus saurus, Car_E2: Carangidae sp. E2, UI_E4: Unidentified Egg-4, Spa_L1: Sparidae sp. L1, Sa_aur: Sardinella aurita, C_cro: Chromis chromis, D_ann: Diplodus annularis, S_cab: Serranus cabrilla, Spa_L2: Sparidae sp. L2, Sym_L1: Symphodus sp. L1, Gob_L2: Gobiidae sp. L2.)

Discussion

A total of 82 taxa in the early life stages were observed in the ichthyoplankton samples in this study where the expected number of maximum richness was calculated as 134 ± 20 species. Up to today, 428 teleost fish species have been documented throughout the Mediterranean coasts of Turkey (Bilecenoglu et al. 2014; Turan et al. 2018 and references therein). Aside from a few species such as Anguilla anguilla (van Ginneken and Maes 2005), all of them have planktonic egg and/or larval stages (Froese and Pauly 2020) that can be sampled via ichthyoplankton surveys (Govoni 2005). Although this preliminary study was

211 performed using a limited sampling effort in a narrow spatial and temporal extent, the early life stages of a considerable part of the fish communities in the northwestern Levantine Sea were sampled during this study.

Even though the abundance of ichthyoplankton assemblages can be affected by physical mechanisms (Bakun 2006), the time, duration, area, and intensity of spawning of adult fish populations are among the primary factors (Frank and Leggett 1983; Somarakis 2000; Miller 2002). Hence, the composition of ichthyoplankton assemblages can be considered an indicator of fish populations’ spawning activities (Sabatés et al. 2007). In accordance with previous studies (Uysal et al. 2008; Avsar and Mavruk 2011; Banbul 2014; Mavruk et al. 2018), the total abundance and species richness were found to be significantly higher in spring when the majority of Mediterranean fish spawn (Tsikliras et al. 2010).

Compared with the adjacent areas, higher numbers of species were detected in this study. Okuş et al. (2007) reported 49 species from Datça-Bozburun and Yuksek et al. (2007) reported 27 species from the Gökova SEPA. However, this outcome should be interpreted cautiously in an ecological perspective. The overall number of species sampled in the context of different studies was not directly comparable because of differences in sampling extent, intensity, and methodology. Since increasing the sampling effort also increases the probability of encountering new species (Hortal et al. 2006; Samarasin et al. 2017), studies covering a wider extent tend to report higher richness values (Ak Orek and Mavruk 2016). Although fewer stations were sampled in this study, our spatial coverage was remarkably wider than Okuş et al. (2007) and Yuksek et al. (2007).

This study sampled seven Lessepsian fish species; however, this number can increase when the morphotypes (unidentified but coded species with specific codes) and family-level identifications are considered. Although the eggs and larvae of Atlantic and Mediterranean fish are relatively well-documented (Lo- Bianco 1956; Richards 2006), many Indo-Pacific fish lack information about their early life stages. This causes a bias in favor of native species in ichthyoplankton inventories and constitutes a significant limitation to the usage of ichthyoplankton in monitoring alien species in the Mediterranean. To tackle this, molecular techniques are being developed as a promising complement to morphological identification (Lewis et al. 2016).

In this study, the eggs and larvae of two native and two non-native species were identified in spring. In the eastern Mediterranean mullids comprise three genera and six species, only two of which - M. barbatus and M. surmuletus - are native (Bilecenoglu et al. 2014). The Lessepsian mullids, Upeneus pori and U. moluccensis are invasive species that have predominated native confamilials in the Gulf of Iskenderun (Mavruk et al. 2017) and Mersin (Gökçe et al. 2016) for a long time. Recently, forsskali has also increased in the coastal habitats of the northeastern Mediterranean (Gurlek et al. 2016; Özvarol and

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Tatlıses 2018). Therefore, protecting native mullids against the potential effects of invasive confamilials is crucially important. Based on our ichthyoplankton samplings, the Kaş-Kekova SEPA has great potential in the conservation of red mullet, M. barbatus. The density of M. barbatus eggs reached up to 71 individuals per m-2 in Kekova, which is a no-take zone for fishery (Official Gazette 2016). This number is more than double the maximum egg density reported in the northeastern Mediterranean for this species (Ak 2004; Banbul 2014; Mavruk 2015). This clearly indicates that SEPA can provide shelter for large spawning aggregations. Along with its ecological importance, M. barbatus constitutes one of the most valuable resources for local fisheries (TUIK 2019), and protecting its spawning aggregations by way of creating no-take zones can remarkably contribute to its sustainability, similar to groupers (Nemeth 2005).

The above “red mullet case” can also be generalized for other species. The total egg abundances - an indicator of propagule production - were detected as 138 and 184 eggs m-2 in Kekova and Kaş, respectively. These numbers were significantly higher than regions outside the SEPA, showing its contribution, as reported in earlier studies in the western Mediterranean (Lopez-Sanz et al. 2009; Crec’Hriou et al. 2010). Additionally, it is important to note that the egg abundances in Kaş and Kekova were apparently higher than those reported for Datça-Bozburun (122 eggs m-2) and Gökova (67 eggs m-2), which are two adjacent marine reserves. These propagules produced inside the reserve can disperse across boundaries (Rowley 1994). Further studies could provide direct evidence for this by focusing on the change of egg/larvae abundance on the horizontal and depth gradients (Crec’Hriou et al. 2010).

In spite of numerous successful examples around the world (Ojeda-Martinez et al. 2007; Goni et al. 2008; Edgar et al. 2008), marine reserves are not recommended as a good application for conservation in the eastern Mediterranean because fishery no-take zones are suspected to also be providing shelter for Lessepsian fishes (Galil et al. 2017). In this study, there was no significant difference in the egg abundances of invasive species between within and outside of the Kaş-Kekova SEPA. This result, however, should not be considered as contradicting the hypothesis by Galil et al. (2017) because most coastal Lessepsian fishes spawn in summer (Mavruk et al. 2018), which is beyond this study’s time frame. This explains that the early life stages of only seven Lessepsian fish species were encountered while Draman (2016) reported the presence of 18 Lessepsian fishes in the Kaş-Kekova SEPA. Further considerations are obviously required to find an answer for the potential negative effects of marine reserves.

Two of the species sampled during period of this study have conservation concerns: brown meagre (Sciaena umbra) and Klein’s sole (Synapturichtys kleini). Based on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)’s records, the global conservation status of brown meagre is “Near Threatened”

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(Chao 2015); however, it is classified as “Vulnerable” for the Mediterranean population (Malak et al. 2011). A total of seven alive eggs of brown meagre were detected in spring. Its abundance was the highest in the Kaş (2 eggs m-2) and Kekova (5 eggs m-2) SEPA. Accordingly, marine reserves can contribute to the conservation of threatened species (Edgar et al. 2008). Additionally, one larval specimen of Klein’s sole was detected at Kaş station. Klein’s sole is classified as Data Deficient (DD) (Tous et al. 2015), which means that there is insufficient information about its biology and ecology to assess its conservation status (IUCN 2012). Particular attention should be paid to DD species since their populations may be under serious threat without the recognition of scientific and conservation societies (Morris et al. 2000). Therefore, all kinds of data regarding their spawning, larval and nursery habitats can be important for the sustainability of Klein’s sole populations.

Although sampling stations were located in shallow waters close to the shore, eight species of mesopelagic deep-sea fish were sampled during the study. Except for one specimen of Hygophum benoiti and five specimens of Cyclothone braueri from Kemer and Adrasan stations, all mesopelagic fishes were sampled in winter. Moreover, they were the dominant part of the larval-fish assemblages in this term. The predominance of larval mesopelagics over neritic species in a coastal area can be explained with horizontal advection. Mesopelagic fishes are offshore spawners (Cuttitta et al. 2004; Isari et al. 2008), which will highly likely drift to the western Antalya coasts where there is a narrow continental shelf (Populus et al. 2017). In winter, the duration of the planktonic stage is longer when colder conditions prevail (Gillooly et al. 2002), which enables ichthyoplankton passively spread over a wider area (O’Connor et al. 2007; Peck et al. 2012). Therefore, larval deep-sea fishes are frequently recorded in the ichthyoplankton assemblages of shallow coastal zones in winter such as in Iskenderun Bay (Mavruk 2017; Mavruk et al. 2018). It remains unclear whether these larvae are aberrantly drifting vagrants or they benefit from the enhanced trophic conditions (Cushing 1990) of coastal areas.

Although this preliminary study covers a limited spatial and temporal extent, the results indicate that western Antalya coasts possess great potential for the conservation of many important species with their high habitat diversity and shelter opportunities for spawning aggregations. Additionally, our results constitute further examples for possible contribution of SEPAs and no-take zones on the protection of commercial or threatened species. However, detailed studies are required to understand the factors structuring ichthyoplankton assemblages and the contribution of the Kaş-Kekova SEPA to egg production and the recruitment of native and invasive marine fish. Moreover, due to the continuous introductions of invasive fish, ichthyoplankton studies should be updated in two adjacent SEPAs, Datça-Bozburun and Gökova, wherein the previous studies are over a decade old (Okuş et al. 2007; Yuksek et al. 2007).

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Acknowledgments

This study was performed in the context of the project TR2013/0327.05.01-02/072 “Climate Change Adaptation for the Sea and Coasts of Antalya” within the framework of “Capacity Building in the Field of Climate Change in Turkey Grant Scheme.” We thank both project partners, the Metropolitan Municipality of Antalya and Turkish Marine Research Foundation for their support during the study. We would like to express our gratitude to Prof. Dr. Bayram Öztürk and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Bülent Topaloğlu, the project staff Ayda Burcu Danışman and Merve Tan for their valuable efforts in the samplings and all necessary permissions were taken for the sampling procedures from the Republic of Turkey, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.

Kış ve ilkbahar mevsimlerinde Doğu Akdeniz’in Kuzeybatı Levant kıyısında ihtiyoplankton bolluğu ve çeşitliliği üzerine ön sonuçlar

Öz

Levant Baseni’nin kuzeybatı kesimleri balıkçılığa kapalı zonlar da bulunduran Özel Çevre Koruma Bölgeleri gibi önemli kıyısal alanları içermektedir. Bu ön çalışma kuzeybatı Levant Baseni'nde ihtiyoplanktonu ele alan ilk çalışma olup, Kaş-Kekova Özel Çevre Koruma Bölgesi'nin (ÖÇKB) katkısı değerlendirilmiştir. İhtiyoplankton örnekleri Aralık 2018 ve Mayıs 2019'da Kemer, Adrasan, Finike, Kekova ve Kaş kıyılarındaki beş istasyondan toplanmıştır. Çalışma kapsamında 33 aile ve dokuz takımdan toplam 82 taksona ait erken gelişim evreleri tespit edilmiştir. Tür zenginliği ve toplam yumurta bolluğu Mayıs ayında (61 tür; 184 yumurta m-2) Aralık ayına göre (23 tür; 42 yumurta m- 2) önemli ölçüde daha yüksek bulunmuştur. Kaş-Kekova ÖÇKB'de her iki mevsimde de diğer istasyonlara nazaran önemli ölçüde daha fazla yumurta tespit edilmiştir. Mayıs ayında, Mullus barbatus yumurtalarına ait bolluk değerlerinin Kekova istasyonunda 71 yumurta m-2'ye ulaştığı görülmüş, bu durum ÖÇKB'nin geniş bir yumurtlama birliği için barınak sağlayabileceği olasılığını gündeme getirmiştir. Ayrıca, ÖÇKB sınırları içerisinde yakın tehdit sınıfındaki (NT) Sciaena umbra ve eksik veri sınıfındaki (DD) olan Synapturichtys kleini'nin de erken yaşam evreleri tespit edilmiştir. Ayrıca, ÖÇKB sınırları içinde (4.22 yumurta m-2) ve dışında (5.29 yumurta m-2) gözlenen Lessepsiyen balık yoğunluğu arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir fark bulunamamıştır. Sonuç olarak, Kaş- Kekova ÖÇKB çok sayıda türün korunmasında ciddi bir potansiyele sahip gibi görünse de istilacı balıkların yumurta üretimine katkısı ileri çalışmalarda ayrıca ele alınmalıdır.

Anahtar kelimeler: Balık yumurtası, balık larvası, ÖÇKB, Doğu Akdeniz, Kaş-Kekova

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