egejfas Ege Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 2148-3140 Ege Üniversitesi 10.12714/egejfas.43.1.07 Ecology (Other) Conservation and Biodiversity Environmental Management (Other) Ekoloji (Diğer) Koruma ve Biyolojik Çeşitlilik Çevre Yönetimi (Diğer) Marine “invasive” alien species on Türkiye's Mediterranean coast: An analysis from an ecological security perspective Türkiye’nin Akdeniz kıyılarında denizel yerli olmayan “istilacı” türler: Ekolojik güvenlik perspektifinden bir analiz https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8474-2316 Vural Çağla AKDENİZ ÜNİVERSİTESİ https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3616-1749 Atvur Senem Akdeniz University, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Department of International Relations 02 28 2026 43 1 59 67 10 24 2025 01 09 2026 Copyright © 1984, Su Ürünleri Dergisi 1984 Su Ürünleri Dergisi

This study examines the effects of marine non-indigenous fish species, considered invasive in the field, on ecosystems, the economy, and human security along Turkey's eastern Mediterranean coast through the lens of ecological security. A multi-stakeholder qualitative design was adopted; semi-structured methods guided by purposeful and snowball sampling, focus group interviews, and participant observations were conducted in the coastal districts of Antalya, Mersin, Adana, and Hatay. Data are analyzed via thematic content analysis, and findings are cross-validated with records from municipalities, the Coast Guard, and relevant public agencies. Results are organized under ecological, economic, and human security. In shallow coastal habitats, ecosystem integrity and trophic dynamics appear weakened; in small-scale fisheries, gear damage is increasing, catch composition is shifting toward lower-value species, and income losses are rising. Health awareness is at times insufficient; public authorities intervene through monitoring, record-keeping, and incentive mechanisms. Scholars caution against demonizing species and emphasize human pressures—overfishing, pollution, and warming seas. The study underscores the need for preventive, ecosystem-based, multi-stakeholder governance supported by transboundary data sharing and attentive to nonhuman life.

Bu çalışma, ekolojik güvenlik merceğinden Türkiye’nin Doğu Akdeniz kıyılarında denizel yerli olmayan ve sahada istilacı olarak değerlendirilen balık türlerinin ekosistemler, ekonomi ve insan güvenliği üzerindeki etkilerini incelemektedir. Çok paydaşlı nitel tasarım benimsenmiş; Antalya, Mersin, Adana ve Hatay’ın kıyı ilçelerinde amaçlı ve kartopu örnekleme ile yönlendirilen yarı yapılandırılmış yöntem ve odak grup görüşmeleri ile katılımcı gözlemler yürütülmüştür. Veriler tematik içerik analiziyle çözümlenmiş; bulguların belediyeler, Sahil Güvenlik ve ilgili kurum kayıtlarıyla örtüşüp örtüşmediği sorgulanmıştır. Bulgular, ekolojik, ekonomik ve insan güvenliği başlıklarında sınıflandırılmaktadır. Bulgular, sığ kıyı habitatlarında ekosistem bütünlüğü ve trofik dinamiklerin zayıfladığını; küçük ölçekli balıkçılıkta av aracı hasarının artığını, av kompozisyonunun daha düşük değerli türlere kaydığını ve gelir kayıplarının yükseldiğini göstermektedir. Bunun yanında insan sağlığı farkındalığının yer yer yetersiz kaldığı; kamu kurumlarının izleme, kayıt ve teşvik mekanizmalarıyla müdahale ettiği gözlenmiştir. Akademisyenler arasında türleri şeytanlaştırmama uyarısı yapanların yanında aşırı avlanma, kirlilik, ısınan denizler gibi insan kaynaklı baskılara dikkat çekenler öne çıkmaktadır. Çalışmada sonuç olarak, önleyici, ekosistem temelli ve çok paydaşlı yönetişim gereksiniminin altı çizilmektedir.

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