2017/06/30 by Julian Evans, Patrick J. Schembri, Patrick Schembri
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Environmental Science · #Actinopterygii #Archaeology #Biology #Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies #Fish <Actinopterygii> #Fishery #Geography #Geology #Identification and Quantification in Food #Marine Ecology and Invasive Species #Mediterranean climate #Oceanography #Perciformes
paper · pdf · doi:10.3750/aiep/02064
openalex publication_date 2017/06/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
The only species of Cephalopholis currently known from the Mediterranean is Cephalopholis taeniops (Valenciennes, 1828), which was recorded from Libya, Malta, and Lampedusa after having autochthonously extended its original Atlantic range. All records of Cephalopholis substantiated by specimens or images from Malta were evaluated, showing that an individual filmed in August 2009 was misidentified and instead represents the first record of Cephalopholis hemistiktos (Rüppell, 1830) from the Mediterranean. Based on these records, C. taeniops is considered to be established in Maltese waters while C. hemistiktos is regarded as a ‘casual’ species, most likely transported by shipping or introduced as an aquarium escapee.