MARINE AND FISHERY SCIENCES 36 (3): 359-363 (2023)

https://doi.org/10.47193/mafis.3632023010903

ABSTRACT. On 26 October 2021, one specimen of shore rockling Gaidropsarus mediterraneus

(Linnaeus, 1758) was captured from Konacik, Iskenderun Bay (Southeastern Mediterranean,

Turkey) with a commercial trawler at a depth of 50 m. The specimen measured 27.5 cm in total

length and weighed 114.8 g. The present paper reports the rare occurrence of this species in Isk-

enderun Bay, Turkey (southeastern Mediterranean Sea). All measurements, counts, and color

descriptions of G. mediterraneus agree with previous descriptions. The present study discusses its

conservation in the area and the Mediterranean Sea.

Key words: Gaidropsaridae, occurrence, new records, Konacik coast, Iskenderun Bay.

La rara ocurrencia de la bertorella Gaidropsarus mediterraneus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Ostei-

chthyes: Gadiformes) en el sureste del Mediterráneo, Turquía

RESUMEN. El 26 de octubre de 2021, un espécimen de Gaidropsarus mediterraneus (Linnaeus,

1758) fue capturado en Konacik, bahía de Iskenderun (sureste del Mediterráneo, Turquía) con arras-

tre comercial, a una profundidad de 50 m. El ejemplar medía 27,5 cm de longitud total y pesaba

114,8 g. El presente documento informa sobre la rara presencia de esta especie en la bahía de Isken-

derun, Turquía (sureste del Mar Mediterráneo). Todas las medidas, recuentos y descripciones de

color de G. mediterraneus concuerdan con las descripciones anteriores. El presente estudio discute

su conservación en la zona y el Mar Mediterráneo.

Palabras clave: Gaidropsaridae, ocurrencia, nuevos registros, costa de Konacik, bahía de Iskenderun.

The Family Gaidropsaridae is represented by four species in the Mediter-

ranean Sea: Mediterranean bigeye rockling Gaidropsarus macroph-

thalmus (Günther, 1867), Azores rockling G. granti Regan, 1903, shore

rockling G. mediterraneus (Linnaeus, 1758) and three-bearded rockling G.

vulgaris (Cloquet, 1824). This family has recently been reviewed by Bañón

et al. (2022) and Barros-García et al. (2022). This genus comprises three

species in Mediterranean waters of Turkey (Bilecenoglu et al. 2002; IUCN

2023).

359

*Correspondence:

deniz.erguden@iste.edu.tr

Received: 31 March 2023

Accepted: 27 April 2023

ISSN 2683-7595 (print)

ISSN 2683-7951 (online)

https://ojs.inidep.edu.ar

Journal of the Instituto Nacional de

Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero

(INIDEP)

This work is licensed under a Creative

Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0

International License

Marine and

Fishery Sciences

MAFIS

NOTE

The rare occurrence of the shore rockling Gaidropsarus mediterraneus

(Linnaeus, 1758) (Osteichthyes: Gadiformes), in the southeastern

Mediterranean, Turkey

DENIZ ERGÜDEN1, *, SIBEL ALAGÖZ ERGÜDEN2, 3 and NECDET UYGUR4

1Faculty of Marine Science and Technology, Iskenderun Technical University, 31220 - Iskenderun, Turkey. 2Imamoglu Vocational School,

Cukurova University, Adana, Turkey. 3Department of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Science, Iskenderun

Technical University, 31220 - Iskenderun, Turkey. 4Maritime Vocational Higher School, Iskenderun Technical University, 31220 - Iskenderun,

Turkey. ORCID Deniz Ergüden https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2597-2151, Sibel Alagöz Ergüden https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4363-433X,

Necdet Uygur https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4460-1735

The shore rockling G. mediterraneus is known

in the eastern Atlantic, from southern Norway, all

around Britain and Ireland to northwestern

African coasts (Hayward et al. 1996) and western

Mediterranean Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the

Aegean Sea, including the Black Sea (Svetovidov

1986; Froese and Pauly 2023). The occurrence of

G. mediterraneus in the western Mediterranean

basin was reported in northern and central

Tunisian waters (Maurin 1962; Azouz 1974;

Capapé and Rafrai-Noura 2021) and the Lebanon

coast (Georges et al. 1964; Lakkis et al. 1996) as

Onos mediterraneus (Linnaeus, 1758) (Bradaï

2000).

Gaidropsarus mediterraneus was first reported

in Turkish waters of the Mediterranean Sea by

Erazi (1942) and Akyuz (1957), and it was includ-

ed in the list of marine fishes of Turkey (Aksiray

1954). However, no specimens of G. mediterra-

neus have yet been reported from the southeastern

Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Hence, we herein

report the first capture record of G. mediterraneus

in the southeastern Mediterranean.

A single specimen of G. mediterraneus was

collected from the coast of Konacik (36° 35'080"

N-35° 82'507"E) (Figure 1) at a depth of 50 m

by a commercial trawler on 28 November 2021

(Figure 2). Morphometric measurements were

done to the nearest 0.1 cm using calipers. Meas-

urements, counts and morphological descriptions

of the shore rockling agreed with previous

descriptions (Svetovidov 1986; Cohen et al.

1990; Bañón et al. 2022).

The Mediterranean specimen of G. mediterra-

neus was 27.5 cm in total length (TL), 25.0 cm

standard length (SL), and weighed 114.8 g. The

specimen had the following diagnostic charac-

ters: first dorsal fin rays I, second dorsal fin rays

44, third dorsal fin rays 51, pectoral fin ray 15,

anal fin ray 43, and pelvic-fin rays 6. Measure-

ments were determined as body depth (19.20% of

SL), head length (21.92% of SL), pre-dorsal

360 MARINE AND FISHERY SCIENCES 36 (3): 359-363 (2023)

Figure 1. Iskenderun Bay (southeastern Mediterranean) indicating the capture site (●) of the shore rockling Gaidropsarus medi-

terraneus (Linnaeus, 1758).

length (20.04% of SL) and pre-anal length

(49.52% of SL). Eye diameter (23.80%), interor-

bital length (25.90%), and pre-orbital length

(30.18%) were calculated as percentage of head

length. The shore rockling G. mediterraneus has

an elongated body with smooth, scaleless skin.

The first dorsal-fin ray is followed by a few small

fleshy filaments, and the second dorsal fin and

anal fin extend most of the body-length (Neal

2007). Gaidropsarus mediterraneus has three

barbels around its mouth on the back side mar-

bled coloration: a single barbel on the chin and a

pair of barbels at the anterior nostril. Corners of

the mouth barely extend past the eyes (Golani et

al. 2006). The colour is dark brown, sometimes

reddish, and the dorsal side has a mottled pattern.

The ventral side is paler and median fin borders

are dark.

Gaidropsarus mediterraneus is a demersal

species (Riede 2004) inhabiting between 1 and

450 m (Froese and Pauly 2023), predominantly

up to 60 m depth. This species can reach a maxi-

mum of 50 cm TL (Cohen et al. 1990). It com-

monly feeds on fishes, crustaceans, polychaetes,

and algae (Capapé and Rafrai-Noura 2021; IUCN

2023). It is found on rocky shorelines and on sub-

littoral rocky habitats with plenty of algae covers,

but can also be found in seagrass beds (Froese

and Pauly 2023).

Gaidropsarus mediterraneus is similar to the

three-bearded rockling G. vulgaris. This species

is distinguished from G vulgaris mainly by its

mottled dark brown color, while G. vulgaris has a

reddish brown back with noticeable blotches

(Muus and Nielsen 1999).

Although G. mediterraneus has been listed as

Least Concern (LC) in the Global Red List by the

International Union for Conservation of Nature

(IUCN) since 2011 for Mediterranean waters (Di

Natale et al. 2011), there is no available informa-

tion on specific conservation measures for shore

rockling species in the Mediterranean Sea (IUCN

2023).

Gaidropsarus mediterraneus is rarely found in

the eastern Mediterranean. It is not a commercial

species, and it is probably discarded at sea by

local fishermen. Available records are insuffi-

cient to indicate the threat to its population. This

species needs to be reevaluated in the eastern

Mediterranean, including Turkish marine waters.

Therefore, further monitoring and fisheries data

are needed in the area. The population structure

of G. mediterraneus, its potential threats, and its

presence on the Mediterranean Sea coast of

361

ERGÜDEN ET AL: OCCURRENCE OF THE SHORE ROCKLING IN THE EASTERN MEDITERRANEAN

Figure 2. Specimen of the shore rockling Gaidropsarus mediterraneus (Linnaeus, 1758) from Iskenderun Bay (southeastern

Mediterranean).

Turkey have not yet been thoroughly investigat-
ed. The present finding is interesting because
there has been no record of G. mediterraneus in
more than 65 years since the species was first
reported in the Mediterranean coastal waters of
Turkey, and will be helpful in the field of fish-
eries research.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors thank to the captain and crews for
providing the sample.
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