Journal of Marine Biology

Volume 2012 (2012), Article ID 462407, 3 pages

doi:10.1155/2012/462407

Research Article

On the Occurrence of the Blunthead Puffer, Sphoeroides pachygaster (Osteichthyes: Tetraodontidae), in the Strait of Messina (Central Mediterranean)

D. Giordano,¹ A. Profeta,¹ L. Pirrera,¹ F. Soraci,¹ F. Perdichizzi,¹ S. Greco,² A. Perdichizzi,¹ and P. Rinelli¹

¹Institute of Coastal Marine Environment (IAMC), CNR, Spianata S. Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy

²ISPRA, Via Curtatone 3, 00185 Rome, Italy

Received 30 March 2012; Accepted 10 May 2012

Academic Editor: Robert A. Patzner

Copyright © 2012 D. Giordano et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

Abstract.

The record of Sphoeroides pachygaster reveals the presence of the species in the Strait of Messina (Central Mediterranean Sea). The adult species was captured on 15 march 2012. It measured 280 mm of total length and weighed 461.5 g. Morphometric measurements (mm) and meristic counts were reported in this paper.

1. Introduction

The blunthead puffer Sphoeroides pachygaster (Müller & Troschel, 1848) is widely distributed in tropical and temperate waters on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean [1, 2]. The species was reported from New England to Southern Brazil [3], off the Eastern Atlantic in Irish Waters [4], in the Bay of Biscay [5, 6] and off Portugal [7]. S. pachygaster was frequently reported in the south of the Strait of Gibraltar, from Morocco, Senegal [8], to the Gulf of Guinea [1, 9].

The species is known in the Mediterranean [10–12] where the northernmost extension range of the species was the Adriatic Sea [13]. In the Tunisian marine waters, the species was observed by Bradaï [14] and recently by Chérif et al. [15], where a substantial population seems to be at present definitively established. In the Italian Seas S. pachygaster was found in the Southern Tyrrhenian Sea [16], Sicilian Channel [17], Ionian Sea [18], Adriatic Sea, and Northern Tyrrhenian Sea [13, 19].

Information available strongly supports the general opinion which considers S. pachygaster a recent immigrant, probably undergoing a fast diffusion eastwards [16, 17] even though Relini and Orsi Relini [20] speculated on the possibility of a previous presence of the species within the Mediterranean on the basis of old ichthyological illustrations.

The aim of this paper is to point out that the species is present in the area. With the present note, the blunthead puffer can now be added to the Strait of Messina fish check-list.

2. Material and Methods

On 15 March 2012 in the Strait of Messina (Sicily), one specimen of Sphoeroides pachygaster was caught by a fisherman (Figure 1). The specimen was weighted to the nearest gram and measured to the nearest millimetre. The morphometric measurement and meristic counts were performed according to Ragonese et al. [17].

Figure 1: Area of discovery: Strait of Messina.

The specimen was photographed and preserved in the ichthyological collection of the Institute for Marine Coastal Environmental (IAMC) of the National Council of Research (CNR) in Messina (Italy).

3. Results and Discussion

The first finding of Sphoeroides pachygaster in the Strait of Messina was an adult male that weighted 461.5 g (Figure 2). The morphometric measurement with percents of total length (% of TL) and meristic counts are shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Morphometric measurements (in mm and F% of TL) and meristic counts of S. pachygaster caught in the Strait of Messina.

(a)  

Morphometric measurements
mm
% of TL

Total length (TL)
280
100,0

Standard length
245
87,5

Head length
65
23,2

Head width
45
16,1

Head height
54
19,3

Eye horizontal diameter
19
6,8

Eye vertical diameter
18
6,4

Interorbital space
28
10,0

Snout length
35
12,5

Postorbital length
30
10,7

Width of pedunculum
32
11,4

Width of gill opening
24
8,6

Predorsal length
20
7,1

Preanal length
21
7,5

Dorsal fin length
23
8,2

Dorsal fin base length
10
3,6

Anal fin length
24
8,6

Anal fin base length
10
3,6

Pectoral fin length
29
10,4

Caudal fin length
36
12,9

Body thickness
70
25,0

Body height
67
23,9

Nostril greatest diameter
6
2,1

Nostril lesser diameter
4
1,4

Internal space
28
10,0

(b)  

Meristic counts

Dortsal fin rays
8

Anal fin rays
8

Pectoral fin rays
14

Caudal fin rays
10

Figure 2: S. pachygaster captured in the Strait of Messina (Central Mediterranean Sea).

Identification was made by skin completely smooth with total lack of scales, spines, and body plates; one lateral line on each side convoluted; body inflatable, with large head and snout rounded; with beak-like jaws with two large teeth on each jaw forming a dental plate with entire cutting edge (Figure 3); eyes big and oval with a flat interorbital space; dorsal fin single placed in front of the similar-shaped anal fin, pelvic fin absent and caudal fin truncated or slightly concave; colour greyish on dorsal surface with brownish spots; belly whitish pale grey; caudal fin base dark.

Figure 3: Particular of teeth of S. pachygaster.

Morphology, colour, morphometric measurements, and meristic counts of this blunthead puffer agree with previous descriptions [3, 11, 12, 17, 21]. The number of alien fish species increased recently in the Black Sea-Mediterranean Basin because of the opening of the Suez Canal, climate change, and international shipping activities [22]. Introduction of Alien species to new ecosystem is considered to be a major threat to its biodiversity, structure, and function [23, 24]. More than 790 alien species have been introduced to the Mediterranean Sea, most of which are benthos and fish species [25]. Movements of species in relation with global warming may increase spatial overlapping between exotic and endemic species, which is a critical issue for the conservation of biodiversity. Marine biological invasions are becoming a reality with sometimes devastating effects [26]. At the same time, it is important to study the genotypic changes of new populations driven by natural selection through the interactions with indigenous populations and in response to the new abiotic environment. Records of the Indo-Pacific and Atlantic fish species from the Mediterranean areas increase continuously [27]. In particular in the Ionian Sea S. pachygaster, after its first occurrence in 1991, showed a significant increase with time and there is now a steady population [28].

This note provides information about a new discovery of Sphoeroides pachygaster. In this Mediterranean area all records and stranding due to upwelling phenomena (typical of the Straits of Messina) should be reported.

Acknowledgment

The authors wish to thank the Sicilian fisherman, La Fauci Giuseppe, who kindly provided the specimen of Sphoeroides pachygaster.

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