Recent findings of some uncommon fishes
from the central Tyrrhenian Sea
by
Peter Nick PSOMADAKIS, Umberto SCACCO & Marino VACCHI (1)
AbsTract. - Thirteen cartilaginous and bony fish species of great faunistic interest were found during a fish landing
survey conducted at Anzio harbour (Latium, central Tyrrhenian Sea) in 2001-2002. Eleven of these (Evermannella balbo,
Gymnura altavela, Lampris guttatus, Pomadasys incisus, Raja undulata, Remora osteochir, Schedophilus ovalis, Sudis
hyalina, Tetragonurus cuvieri, Trachipterus trachypterus and Zu cristatus) are uncommon and even rare in the central Tyrrhenian Sea. Seven of these (Gymnura altavela, Lampris guttatus, Pomadasys incisus, Remora osteochir, Schedophilus
ovalis, Sudis hyalina and Tetragonurus cuvieri) were never recorded in Latium waters. We discuss extension of the geographic area of a termophilic species, P. incisus, and the occurrence, in Anzio waters, of Sphyraena viridensis, currently
recognized as endemic to the Mediterranean. Occurrence in the Tyrrhenian Sea of Beryx splendens, an Atlantic species, is
critically discussed on the ground of existing hypotheses. résumé. - Récentes captures de poissons peu communs en mer Tyrrhénienne centrale.
Durant le contrôle périodique du débarquement de poissons dans le port d’Anzio (Latium, mer tyrrhénienne centrale)
en 2001-2002, nous avons enregistré treize espèces de poissons osseux ou cartilagineux de grand intérêt faunistique. Onze
d’entre elles (Evermannella balbo, Gymnura altavela, Lampris guttatus, Pomadasys incisus, Raja undulata, Remora osteochir, Schedophilus ovalis, Sudis hyalina, Tetragonurus cuvieri, Trachipterus trachypterus et Zu cristatus) sont peu communes ou même rares en mer Tyrrhénienne centrale. Sept autres (Gymnura altavela, Lampris guttatus, Pomadasys incisus,
Remora osteochir, Schedophilus ovalis, Sudis hyalina et Tetragonurus cuvieri) n’avaient jamais été signalées dans les eaux
du Latium. Nous discutons l’extension de l’aire géographique d’une espèce thermophile, P. incisus, et de la présence de
Sphyraena viridensis dans les eaux d’Anzio. Cette dernière espèce, selon la littérature récente, est une espèce endémique
de Méditerranée. La présence en mer tyrrhénienne de Beryx splendens, une espèce d’origine atlantique, est discutée de
manière critique à la lumière d’hypothèses fondées sur la littérature.
Key words. - Uncommon fish - MED - Tyrrhenian Sea - Record.
Mediterranean fish fauna is characterized by a high
degree of diversity despite the modest amplitude of this
semi-enclosed sea. Quignard and Tomasini (2000) reported
661 bony and cartilaginous fish species for this sea basin,
representing more than 5% of the world marine fish species,
a conspicuous amount with regard to the only 0.82% surface
area and 0.32% volume of the world oceans (Defant, 1961).
The actual Mediterranean ichthyofauna is mainly related
to the geological evolution of this basin. Its variety of climatic and hydrological situations occurred in the last five
millions years after the so-called “salinity crisis” at the
Messinian stage (Bianchi and Morri, 2000). Change in Mediterranean fish assemblages is a relatively well-studied phenomenon, both in the eastern (Por, 1978; Golani, 1998) and
western sectors (Andaloro and Rinaldi, 1998; Orsi Relini,
2001). However, the causes of this phenomenon remain as
hypotheses. One major hypothesis is the “meridionalization”
of the northern coast of the western Mediterranean due to
hydroclimatic changes resulting in an increase in the influx
of warm Atlantic water masses via the Gibraltar Strait (Francour et al., 1994; Quignard and Tomasini, 2000).
Advances in sampling technology permit to survey previously unexplored areas and improve assessment of fish
biodiversity, a fundamental step in defining the state of
exploited fish stocks, notably those targeted by multi-species fisheries (Caddy and Sharp, 1986). In this context, in
2001-2002, we performed an ichthyological survey of Anzio
waters (Fig. 1), monitoring landings of local commercial
fishing fleet, working with a large variety of fishing gears
and techniques. A total of 186 cartilaginous and bony fish
species were recorded (Psomadakis, 2002), including rare,
uncommon and never recorded species in this area. These
results were compared to other inventories and to ichthyological collections hosted in Italian natural history museums.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
During 2001-2002, four / five sampling days per month
were carried out at the daily fish auction of Anzio harbour.
Anzio is a small fishing town, located in the southern coast
(1) ICRAM, Istituto Centrale per la Ricerca scientifica e tecnologica Applicata al Mare, Via di Casalotti 300, 00166 Roma, ITALY.
[[email protected]]
Cybium 2006, 30(4): 297-304.
Uncommon fishes from the Tyrrhenian Sea Psomadakis et al.
made right after catches were disembarked. Gears used and
localities of landed catch were recorded. Fish species were
identified based on dichotomous keys (Tortonese, 1956a,
1970, 1975; Fischer et al., 1987; Notarbartolo Di Sciara and
Bianchi, 1998). In some cases, additional samples were
obtained for detailed taxonomic analyses. In addition, the
occurrence of certain species presented in this paper was
attested only on the basis of photographic documentation
obtained from local fishermen and fishmongers.
Figure 1. - Map showing the study area (l), Anzio, in the central
Tyrrhenian Sea. [Carte de la zone intéressée par cette étude (l),
Anzio, dans la mer Tyrrhénienne centrale.]
of Latium, about 60 km from Rome (Fig. 1). Its fleet is composed of artisanal (75 units) and trawl (31 units) vessels and
operates from the coastal waters of the shelf to the upper
portion of the continental slope, including Ponza (Pontine
Islands). Artisanal fisheries operate with trammel nets, various types of gill nets, mid-water and bottom longlines, driftnets, encircling nets and pot gear. Trawl fishing is characterized by bottom and pelagic trawlers, operating in coastal and
deep water environments. Fish species inventories were
RESULTS
Cartilaginous fish
Gymnura altavela (Linnaeus, 1758): one specimen, male
[52 cm TL, 76 cm disc width, 2.8 kg in total weight] caught
on 6 July 2002, by trawler “Azzurra”, on a sandy bottom in
inshore waters along the Latium coast just a few km north of
Anzio; (Fig. 2A); deposited in the Zoological Museum University of Naples “Federico II”, MZN-Z6810.
Raja undulata Lacepède, 1802: two specimens, caught
by local gill-netters in shallow waters; one adult male captured on 30 July 2001, 3.5 kg, 70 cm TL, 50 cm disc width);
one adult female captured in April 2002, 5.0 kg, 80 cm TL,
55 cm disc width).
Figure 2. - Six of the 13 uncommon
fishes landed at Anzio in the central
Tyrrhenian Sea. A: Gymnura altavela;
B: Beryx splendens; C: Lampris guttatus; D: Pomadasys incisus; E: Schedophilus ovalis; F: Sphyraena viridensis.
[Six des treize poissons peu communs
débarqués à Anzio dans la mer Tyrrhénienne centrale.]
298
Cybium 2006, 30(4)
Psomadakis et al.
Bony fish
Beryx splendens Lowe, 1834: one specimen (about 40 cm
TL, 800 g) caught by deep-sea trawler, August 2001, off the
Anzio coast and sold at local auction (Fig. 2B).
Evermannella balbo (Risso, 1820): one specimen (13 cm
TL) trawled about 15 miles off the Anzio coast at 500-600 m
depth, 6 May 2002, by D. Accardo, captain of the “Angelo
Padre”, MZN-Z6822.
Lampris guttatus (Brünnich, 1788): one specimen (60 cm
TL) (Fig. 2C), caught off Anzio coast by drifting longliner
“Circe I”, June 2001. Other specimens were caught off Anzio
coast by longliners targeting swordfish in offshore waters:
summer 1998, 110 cm TL, 33 kg; summer 1999, 70 cm TL,
20 kg, and another specimen weighing 11 kg.
Pomadasys incisus (Bowdich, 1825): one specimen
(about 20 cm TL), caught by gill-net near Anzio harbour,
June 2001, at about 10 m depth (Fig. 2D).
Remora osteochir (Cuvier, 1829): one specimen, 19 cm
TL, found on 6 July 2002 attached to swordfish by drifting
longliner fishermen operating in offshore waters along the
Anzio coast, MZN-Z6823.
Schedophilus ovalis (Cuvier, 1833): one specimen, 48 cm
TL, 1.0 kg (Fig. 2E), caught by deep sea trawler “Kennedy”
on July 2002 off Anzio coast, MZN-Z6824.
Sphyraena viridensis Cuvier, 1829: two specimens
(116 cm TL - 5.6 kg and 80 cm TL - 3.9 kg) caught by trammel-net on 3 April 2002 at Ponza Island (Fig. 2F). On the
basis of some unambiguous characters (among them cross
bars on the flanks) and their large size, they were identified
as S. viridensis. Moreover, the number of lateral line scales
(145) was within the range indicated by Relini and Orsi Relini (1997), as a distinctive character for Mediterranean specimens.
Sudis hyalina Rafinesque, 1810: one specimen, caught
by deep sea trawler “Angelo Padre” on 18 April 2002. The
specimen was lacking the posterior part, probably bitten off
by one of the several deep sea sharks caught during the same
haul. The identification of the species was made on the basis
of its distinctive dentition (large and serrated mandibular
teeth). The standard length (SL) was estimated at approximately 33 cm, calculating the proportion of the head length
(9.5 cm) with respect to body dimensions, as indicated by
Bini (1970a). MZN-Z6825.
Tetragonurus cuvieri Risso, 1810: one specimen, 32.5 cm
TL, caught in March 2003 by professional fisherman L.
Marcheggiani with trammel-net near Anzio harbour at a
depth of 5-6 m. Although out of the temporal range of our
study, we included this capture in the present study for its
faunistic importance in Latium waters. MZN-Z6826.
Trachipterus trachypterus (Gmelin, 1789) and Zu cristatus (Bonelli, 1820): these specimens measured respectively
140 and 80 cm TL. The two ribbonfishes were taken in summer 2000 off the coast of Anzio by trawler at 500-600 m
Cybium 2006, 30(4)
Uncommon fishes from the Tyrrhenian Sea
depth. Individual lengths and capture details accompanied
the photographic documentation provided by a local fishmonger.
DISCUSSION
Our knowledge of fish assemblage composition in the
central Tyrrhenian Sea was improved. The presence of several uncommon and rare species was confirmed, and the panoceanic deepwater fish B. splendens was reported for the first
time in this region. None of these species is mentioned in a
recent fish list that resulted from a four-year time series
(1994-1997) of groundfish trawl surveys conducted in the
Tuscany and Latium fishing districts (Biagi et al., 2002).
These authors recorded 174 fish species including several
deep water mesopelagic fishes belonging to gonostomatids,
myctophids, paralepidids, photichthyids and sternoptychids,
as well as some deep water demersal and benthic species
(e.g., Acantholabrus palloni, Bellottia apoda, Lappanella
fasciata, Lepidion lepidion, Molva molva). They were not
found during our study. In contrast of the 186 fish species
recorded in Anzio waters, 45 are missing in Biagi et al.
(2002) faunistic list. Some of these are open water pelagic
species (e.g., Alopias vulpinus, Brama brama, Isurus oxyrinchus, Luvarus imperialis, Mobula mobular, Prionace
glauca) occasionally captured by driftnets and longlines set
in offshore waters along the Anzio coast; others are important commercial species belonging to the carangid, labrid,
mugilids, sciaenid, serranid, scombrid, sparid, stromateid
and xiphiid families, normally present in the catches of the
Anzio fishing fleet. Most of the fish records cited in the present paper concerns pelagic species, which are difficult to
sample using trawl fishing method only. Our results underline the importance to consider several different sampling
approaches to assess the biodiversity of the fish community
(La Mesa and Vacchi, 2004). In fact, a substantial part of the
presented occurrences were obtained from artisanal fishery,
which uses various selective fishing gears and exploits a
great variety of coastal and offshore habitats. Data from literature on the Mediterranean distribution of these fish species found in Anzio waters are discussed below.
The spiny butterfly ray Gymnura altavela is distributed
on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean and
Black Sea. In Italian waters G. altavela is rare (Tortonese,
1956a) and principally known from Sicilian waters
(Rafinesque, 1810; Bonaparte, 1835; Doderlein, 1878).
Besides these historical records, the only circumstantiated
findings of the species come from the Ligurian Sea (Ariola,
1904; Vinciguerra, 1923). The rarity of the spiny butterfly
ray in the Italian seas is underlined by the scanty number of
specimens preserved in the national museums. Furthermore,
G. altavela does not appear in the species collected during
299
Uncommon fishes from the Tyrrhenian Sea the trawl surveys operated in the framework of MEDITS
(Mediterranean International trawl survey) and GRUND
(National Group for Demersal Resources) research projects
performed along the Italian coasts since 1985 (Bertrand et
al., 2000; Relini et al., 2000). The Anzio specimen, together
with the recent occurrence reported from the Eastern Adriatic (Dulčić et al., 2003), reaffirms the presence of spiny butterfly ray in the Tyrrhenian and Adriatic sectors after a long
period of apparent disappearance.
The undulate skate Raja undulata belongs to the most
diversified order of rajiforms in the Mediterranean (Notarbartolo di Sciara and Bianchi, 1998). Despite it is considered
quite common in the Eastern Atlantic, R. undulata is rare in
the Mediterranean, and especially in the Italian seas (Tortonese, 1956a). In the latter, the undulate skate has been found in
the Ligurian (Perugia, 1897; Ariola, 1904), Tyrrhenian (Lo
Bianco, 1909; D’Ancona and Razzauti, 1937) and Adriatic
(Ninni, 1912) Seas, and also in Sicily (Rafinesque, 1810;
Doderlein, 1878; Capapé and Desoutter, 1979). In Latium
waters, besides the photographed specimen cited by Bini
(1970b), we were informed of an unpublished record by a bottom trawler between Anzio and Torvaianica on 6 September
2003 at 32 m depth (A. Belluscio, pers. com., 2003).
The presence of Beryx splendens, in the central Tyrrhenian
represents, from a mere faunistic point of view, the most
important record presented in our paper. In fact, this species is
one of the 18 alien species of Atlantic origin that has entered
Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar (Golani et al.,
2002). Until now, there have been only two records in the
Mediterranean Sea, both from the Ligurian Sea (Gavagnin et
al., 1992; Orsi Relini et al., 1995). The Anzio specimen constitutes the third documented capture of the species in the
Mediterranean waters during the last forty years. So this
should give to B. splendens the status of established species in
the Mediterranean, according to the CIESM Atlas of Exotic
Species in the Mediterranean rules (Golani et al., 2002).
The balbo sabertooth (Evermannella balbo) is a deep
water mesopelagic species widely distributed in the Eastern
Atlantic (Johnson, 1984). Until the Danish oceanographic
vessel “Thor” (1908-1910) revealed its presence throughout
the Mediterranean (from Spain to Rhodes Island), E. balbo
was considered an exceptionally rare species (Tortonese,
1956b). In the Italian seas, the balbo sabertooth occurred in
the Sicilian waters (Cocco, 1838; Mazzarelli, 1909; Berdar
et al., 1975), in the Ligurian (Sassi, 1846; Trotti, 1953, Rossi,
1958) and northern Tyrrhenian Seas (Relini, 1995), Gulf of
Taranto (Pastore, 1976) and Adriatic Sea (Karlovac, 1952).
Our specimen documented for the first time its presence in
the central Tyrrhenian Sea.
Commonly known as spotted opah, Lampris guttatus
occurs worldwide (panoceanic). The species is not common
in the Mediterranean and has occurred mainly in the Western
basin, with some occurrences in the Adriatic and Aegean
300
Psomadakis et al.
Seas. The eastern range of the species does not extend as far
as the Levant Sea (Fischer et al., 1987). In the Italian seas, L.
guttatus has occurred mainly in the Ligurian (Sassi, 1846;
Ariola, 1904; Tortonese, 1970) and northern Tyrrhenian Seas
(D’Ancona and Razzauti, 1937). Furthermore, Doderlein
(1878) includes L. guttatus in the Sicilian ichthyofauna. To
our knowledge, besides the capture of a large specimen in
the Southern Tyrrhenian off the Calabrese coast (Andaloro
and Di Natale, 1979), no other published record of the species exist in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The bastard grunt Pomadasys incisus, is distributed in
the Eastern Atlantic, from Gibraltar to Angola including
Madeira and Canary Islands. It is also reported along the
southern coast of the Mediterranean Sea, from Morocco to
Turkey (Fischer et al., 1987), Ionian Greek coast (Kaspiris,
1970), and from southern Spain (Lozano y Rey, 1952). Furthermore, one historical record of P. incisus along the northwestern coast of the Mediterranean was given by Moreau
(1891). In the last 13 years, the species was recorded several
times at higher latitudes in the western basin of the Mediterranean Sea (Gulf of Lion: Quignard and Raibaut, 1993; Ligurian Sea: Gavagnin et al., 1994; northern Tyrrhenian Sea:
Serena and Silvestri, 1996; central Tyrrhenian Sea: De Pirro
et al., 1997; southern Tyrrhenian Sea: Catalano et al., 1998).
Therefore, our finding confirms the presence of P. incisus in
the central Tyrrhenian Sea.
The echeneid Remora osteochir is a suckerfish that shows
a strong preference for istiophorids and swordfish as host
(Tortonese, 1975). The first extensive description of diverse
members of Echeneidae in the Italian seas was achieved by
Tortonese (1972, 1973). To date, “La Specola Museum” of
Florence, houses an important series of juvenile individuals
of R. osteochir taken from different Italian localities (Elba
Island, Taranto, Messina, Catania, Palermo). One individual
from the Gulf of Taranto (Cat. N. 1096), erroneously
described by Costa (1840) as Echeneis musignani, was designated by Tortonese (1972) as a “lectotype”. Furthermore,
Tortonese (1972) mentioned two other specimens captured in
the Ligurian Sea, and Houy (1909) referred on a specimen
captured in the Straits of Messina. Today, many aspects of the
biology of this group of fishes are still uncertain, especially in
relation to the presence and range of the different species of
remoras within the Mediterranean. Fischer et al. (1987)
include five species of the genus Remora in the Mediterranean Sea, and indicates for R. osteochir a southern distribution within the western basin. However, the capture of a specimen in the South-Eastern Aegean Sea (Kaspiris and Ondrias,
1984), extends the species range more easterly within the
Mediterranean. Conclusively, the finding at Anzio confirms
the presence of the species in the Tyrrhenian waters and corroborates the hypothesis that R. osteochir could represent the
most common echeneid along the Mediterranean coasts (Tortonese, 1973).
Cybium 2006, 30(4)
Psomadakis et al.
Adult specimens of Schedophilus ovalis were rarely captured in the Mediterranean Sea. The only known individuals
exceeding 60 cm in length were obtained from a seamount in
the Ligurian Sea (Orsi Relini et al., 1990; Relini et al., 1994).
To our knowledge, apart from the ones given for the Gulf of
Naples (Costa A., 1871), Elba Island (Damiani, 1909) and
south-eastern Corsica (Francour and Javel, 2003), no other
documented captures of S. ovalis have occurred in the Tyrrhenian Sea.
The yellowmouth barracuda Sphyraena viridensis occurs
in the Eastern-Central Atlantic (included Cape Verde, Canary
and Azores Islands). The distribution and abundance for this
species in the Mediterranean are poorly known because most
published data do not separate it from S. sphyraena (BenTuvia, 1986). The first Mediterranean record of S. viridensis
was obtained from the Israeli coast (Ben-Tuvia, 1971); the
species was subsequently reported also from the North-Western Mediterranean (Miniconi, 1980). The hypothesis of a
recent immigration of S. viridensis into the western Mediterranean was rejected after that Relini and Orsi Relini (1997)
demonstrated that the species was fished in the Ligurian Sea
since 1912. The individuals found at Anzio agree the general
description made by Relini and Orsi Relini (1997) and support the hypothesis on the existence of a Mediterranean form
or sub-species (S. viridensis mediterranea), characterized by
a higher number of lateral line scales in comparison to Atlantic populations. Nowadays, the species seems to be common
along the Italian coasts; Vacchi et al. (1999), reported the
sightings of large shoals of S. viridensis around Ustica Island
(southern Tyrrhenian Sea) and in the opinion of fishermen
and anglers operating in Latium waters (central Tyrrhenian
Sea), this large-size sphyraenid species is becoming more
frequent in the area.
Sudis hyalina is the largest paralepidid inhabiting the
Mediterranean (Tortonese, 1970). This rare deep water species
is mainly known from specimens collected in the Sicilian seas
(Doderlein, 1878; Sanzo, 1917), from the Gulf of Naples (Bellotti, 1878) and Ligurian Sea (Ariola, 1904). In the eastern
basin, S. hyalina was recorded as far as Turkey (Mater and
Kaya, 1987) and the Levant Sea (Golani, 1996). In twelve
years of trawl surveys carried out within GRUND project,
only few individuals of S. hyalina have been captured, notably
in the Seas of Sardinia (Cau, 1987), the Ionian (Relini, 2000)
and the central Tyrrhenian (Spedicato et al., 1996). It is interesting to note that S. hyalina has never been recorded in the
Adriatic Sea (Amori et al., 1993) and that in two important
reference works (Post, 1984; Fischer et al., 1987), the distribution area shown for the species leaves out large sectors of
the Ionian Sea, included the Gulf of Taranto where, in contrast, the species has been cited in different works (Brunelli
and Bini, 1934; Parenzan, 1960; Bello, 1990).
The smalleye squaretail Tetragonurus cuvieri is a mesobathypelagic species (down to 4000 m) with wide geographCybium 2006, 30(4)
Uncommon fishes from the Tyrrhenian Sea
ical distribution including both sides of the Pacific, the Natal
coast of South Africa (Western Indian Ocean), the Eastern
Atlantic and the Mediterranean Sea. In the Mediterranean
Sea, T. cuvieri has been exclusively reported in the western
basin (Haedrich, 1986). In the Italian waters, this bizarre fish
is principally known from the Ligurian Sea, where Sassi
(1846), Vinciguerra (1879) and Doria and Gestro (1880)
were the first authors to report it. More recent citations of the
species in the latter sea, were made by Brunelli and Bini
(1934), Guiglia (1950) and Campi (1963). The species has
been also reported from Corsica and Sardinia (De Caraffa,
1929; Cau, 1980). In the Tyrrhenian Sea, T. cuvieri has been
found at Elba Island (D’Ancona and Razzauti, 1937), in the
Gulf of Naples (Emery, 1882) and at Palermo (Sarà and Sarà,
1990); larval and post-larval forms have been found several
times in the Straits of Messina (Spartà, 1946; Berdar et al.,
1982). The most recent captures of the smalleye squaretail
have occurred in the Channel of Otranto (Ionian Sea) (Basanisi et al., 1999), and in the Sicilian Channel (Ragonese and
Giusto, 2003). The finding of Anzio specimen constitutes the
first documented presence of the species for the Latium
waters and, to our knowledge, its shallower record in the
Italian seas. This confirms the wide range depths of T.
cuvieri, as already noted by Demestre and Roig (1982).
The ribbonfish Trachipterus trachypterus is widely distributed in the Western Pacific (Japan and New Zealand),
Eastern Atlantic (from Morocco to South Africa) and Mediterranean Sea (Heemstra and Kannemeyer, 1986). In all the
areas where it occurs, the species is considered quite rare,
probably due to its mesopelagic habits which make it difficult to sample. The eastern range of the ribbonfish in the
Mediterranean stretches as far as the Levant Sea of Israel
(Golani, 1996). The bulk of literature reporting the presence
of this species in the Mediterranean, comes from the Adriatic
Sea (Jardas, 1980). Some interesting information on ribbon
fish biology was given by Cau (1980), who trawled three
adults on mesobathyal fishing grounds off the southern coast
of Sardinia (south-eastern Tyrrhenian Sea). The stomachs of
these individuals contained reptant decapod crustaceans and
octopod cephalopods, which allowed the author to infer a
certain degree of benthic life in the ribbonfish, which,
diversely, is considered a strict mesopelagic species.
Zu cristatus occurs throughout the entire Mediterranean
basin with the exception of the northern parts of the Adriatic
and Aegean Seas (Fischer et al., 1987). Juveniles were occasionally found in shallow waters near the shore (Metaxà,
1833). In the Italian waters, the species is principally known
from the Ligurian Sea, where its presence is attested by specimens obtained from the Gulf of Genoa (Tortonese, 1958),
San Remo (Gavagnin, 1976) and Lerici, where the “type”
specimen was caught in 1818 and later described by Bonelli
(1820). Until now, the presence of the species in Latium
waters was limited to one historical record from Civitavec301
Uncommon fishes from the Tyrrhenian Sea chia (Metaxà, 1833).
In conclusion, monitoring local fisheries at Anzio allowed
to enlarge the knowledge on the diversity of the local fish
community. Many species, not only are considered rare in
the whole Mediterranean, but some of them seems to indicate environmental changes actually occurring in our seas.
The tropicalization and meridionalization of the Mediterranean with enrichment of the native fauna and flora, results in
the extension of distribution area of tropical and/or termophilic species (Riera et al., 1995). The importance of studying and monitoring such phenomenon deals with the need of
information to evaluate the ecological consequences of such
changes, and with the aim of conservation and understanding a likely incoming new equilibrium.
Acknowledgements. - The authors wish to thank the entire fisherman community of Anzio for their kind collaboration. A special
thanks goes to P. Sorrentino, P. Musilli, Anna and Paolo Pollastrini,
who actively provided precious documentation. Moreover, we are
especially indebted to the following persons: E. Faller, A. Machulska, C. Ceccaroli, S. Di Muccio and M. Pisapia. We are also grateful to: N. Maio, G. Doria, S. Vanni, F. Bentivegna, M. Podestà, M.
Sarà, R. Carlini, and A. Belluscio for their readily help. Conclusively, we wish to acknowledge anonymous reviewers who provided valuable improvements of the manuscript, and G. Lecointre for
translating the abstract in French.
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Reçu le 16 décembre 2004.
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