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A specimen of Synagrops japonicus was collected in the north-western Mediterranean during an exploratory cruise using bottom trawl nets, aimed at the evaluation of possible consequences of lost- at-sea drums containing toxic materials. The discovery of this specimen follows the first record that occurred in the same area 28 years previously, fished by a bottom trawler in the waters of Portofino (Genoa, Italy) in 1987. The morphometric and meristic details of the new specimen are provided. The presence of this individual in the north-western portion of the Mediterranean is likely related to an accidental transport of larvae via ballast water by ships coming from outside the Mediterranean basin., Uzorak Synagrops japonicus sakupljen je u sjeverozapadnom Mediteranu tijekom istraživačkog krstarenja pridnenim povlačnim mrežama, s ciljem procjene mogućih posljedica izgubljenih u moru bubnjeva koje sadrže otrovne materijale. Otkriće ovog primjerka slijedi prvi zapis koji se dogodio na istom području prije 28 godina, a primjerak je bio ulovljen pridnenom koćaricom u vodama Portofina (Genova, Italija) 1987. godine. Navedeni su morfometrijski i meristički detalji novog uzorka. Prisutnost ove jedinke u sjevero- zapadnom dijelu Sredozemnog mora je vjerojatno povezana sa slučajnim transportom ličinki balast- nom vodom u brodovima koji dolaze izvan mediteranskog bazena.

In this study we investigated the spatio-temporal distribution of gurnards (8 species of Triglidae and one species of Peristediidae) in the northern Mediterranean Sea using 22 years of MEDITS bottom trawl survey data (1994-2015). Gurnards showed significant differences in terms of abundance, dominance and composition among geographical sub-areas and ecoregions, with the highest relative biomass (BIy) being found in Malta, eastern Corsica, the Balearic Islands and the eastern Ionian Sea. The lowest gurnards BIy were observed in the highly exploited areas of the western Mediterranean and the Adriatic Sea, where the largest number of species with a negative linear trend in BIy was also found. The temporal trends in species abundances highlighted a general decrease for the coastal species (C. lucerna, C. lastoviza, C. obscurus) as compared with the species inhabiting the deep continental shelf and slope (T. lyra, P. cataphractum). The results provide for the first time an overview of the spatiotemporal trend in the abundance of gurnards over the wide spatial scale of the northern Mediterranean Sea, also suggesting the possible use of these species as indicators for monitoring the impact of fishing pressure on demersal fish assemblages., En este estudio hemos investigado la distribución espacio-temporal de los gurnardos (8 especies de Triglidae y 1 especie de Peristediidae) en el norte del Mediterráneo usando 22 años de datos de la campaña de pesca de arrastre MEDITS (1994-2015). Los gurnardos mostraron diferencias significativas en la abundancia, dominancia y composición entre las distintas sub-areas geográficas (GSAs) y las ecoregiones, encontrándose las mayores biomasas relativas (BIy) en Malta, el este de Córcega, las Islas Baleares y el oeste del mar Jónico. Por otro lado, los menores valores de BIy fueron observados en las áreas más explotadas del oeste del Mediterráneo y del Mar Adriático, donde también se observó el mayor número de especies con una tendencia lineal negativa en relación a BIy. La tendencia temporal en la abundancia de especies evidenció una disminución general en las especies costeras (C. lucerna, C. lastoviza, C. obscurus) respecto a las especies que habitan la profunda plataforma y pendiente continentales (T. lyra, P. cataphractum). Los resultados proporcionan por primera vez una visión general de las tendencias espacio-temporales en la abundancia de los gurnardos en la amplia escala espacial del norte del Mediterráneo, sugiriendo también la posibilidad de usar estas especies como indicadores para monitorear el impacto de la presión de pesca sobre los ensamblajes de peces demersales.

The distribution and biological features of anglerfish (Lophius piscatorius and L. budegassa) in the Mediterranean Sea were analysed from trawl surveys data (MEDITS project, years 1994-1999). The above-mentioned species were widely distributed in the Mediterranean, but differences in abundance were found according to geographic sectors and depths. Most of the collected specimens belonged to the first length cohorts and length distributions also differed at macroarea levels. Mean sizes at female sexual maturity were estimated at 68.5 cm and 66.2 cm total length, respectively for L. piscatorius and L. budegassa