The First Substantiated Record of Blunthead Puffer Sphoeroides pachygaster (Müller and Troschel, 1848), From the Coast of Northern Cyprus (Eastern Mediterranean)

Year 2021, Volume: 10 Issue: 1, 1 - 7, 31.03.2021

Hasan Deniz Akbora , Robin Snape Deniz Ayas , Burak Ali Çiçek

https://doi.org/10.33714/masteb.722547

Cited By: 3

https://izlik.org/JA74LB88ME

Abstract

Blunthead puffer Sphoeroides pachygaster (Müller and Troschel, 1848) is a circumglobally distributed Tetraodontid found in temperate and tropical waters. It is believed to have colonized the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean. There are relatively few records of this fish in the Mediterranean Sea. On March 2020, a mature female individual was caught incidentally by a commercial fisher in Northern Cyprus. The fish was 520 mm in total length and 1200 grams in total weight. Detailed morphometrics and meristics were reported. This study is the first substantiated record of S. pachygaster from Cyprus waters, and the specimen is the largest blunthead puffer reported with a 455 mm standard length and 520 mm total length.

Keywords

Tetraodontidae , Incidental catch , Morphometrics , Maximum size report , Levant Basin , A rare occurrence

Thanks

The authors thank Kemal Çolak, the owner and captain of the commercial vessel, for participating in this research and to SPOT’s bycatch project team, specifically Çiğdem Çağlar who reported the specimen. We also acknowledge the Northern Cyprus Ministry for Agriculture and Natural Resources for permitting us to undertake this work.

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