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R Soc Open Sci
2023 May 01;105:230251. doi: 10.1098/rsos.230251.
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Mass mortality of the invasive alien echinoid Diadema setosum (Echinoidea: Diadematidae) in the Mediterranean Sea.
Zirler R
,
Schmidt LM
,
Roth L
,
Corsini-Foka M
,
Kalaentzis K
,
Kondylatos G
,
Mavrouleas D
,
Bardanis E
,
Bronstein O
.
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The sea urchin Diadema setosum is an ecological key species across its range, particularly on coral reefs. In 2006 D. setosum was first observed in the Mediterranean Sea, and since, it has proliferated to occupy the entire Levantine Basin. Here we report the mass mortality of the invasive D. setosum in the Mediterranean Sea. This is the first report of D. setosum mass mortality. The mortality spans over 1000 km along the Levantine coast of Greece and Turkey. The current mortality shows similar pathologies to previously reported Diadema mass mortality events, suggesting pathogenic infection as the cause of mortalities. Maritime transport, local currents, and fish predation of infected individuals may distribute pathogens at varying geographical scales. Due to the proximity of the Levantine Basin to the Red Sea, the risk of pathogen transport to the native Red Sea D. setosum population is imminent-with potentially catastrophic consequences.
Figure 1. . Diadema mortality. (a) Geographical scales of Diadema pathogen transport during mass mortality events. (b,c) Scavenger fish (red arrows, from left to right: Thalassoma pavo, Diplodus vulgaris, Thalassoma pavo, Siganus rivulatus, Diplodus annularis, Siganus rivulatus, and Sparisoma cretense) feeding on dead and dying D. setosum at Alimia Island on 13 September 2022. (d) D. antillarum (credit: K. Kitson-Walters), (e) D. africanum (credit: João Monteiro) and (f) D. setosum exhibiting typical tissue loss associated with pathogenic driven mortality.
Figure 2. . Maps of historical and current Diadema mass mortality events. (a) The Mediterranean Sea, divided into regions separated by marine natural barriers (dashed red lines). Main and seasonal currents are represented by black and blue arrows, respectively [31]. Bottom left: global scale view of Diadema mass mortalities: western Atlantic Ocean (blue), eastern Atlantic Ocean (yellow) and Mediterranean Sea (red). Black cross indicates the location of localized D. mexicanum mortality [30]. AOF, Almeria-Oran Front; SC, Sicily Channel; ADR, Otranto Channel; AEG, southern Aegean boundary. (b) Locations of healthy (white stars) and dead (red stars) D. setosum within the Levantine Basin of the Mediterranean Sea. Black circles indicate mortality locations reported by Karakus [32]. Numbers indicate the temporal sequence of occurrences within the Mediterranean—indicating an east-to-west trajectory. Letters correspond to site names in table 1.
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