Four specimens of the peristediid genus Satyrichthys were sampled with bottom long-lines from a depth of 180 m during the VA ‘Farumas’ Reef Fish Survey off North Malé Atoll, Maldives, in 1999. The largest and smallest of these specimens were deposited at Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum (BPBM 34965, standard length (SL) 278.25 mm; BPBM 41160, SL 413.65 mm). Based on measurements and meristic counts, BPBM 34965 is characterized as Satyrichthys laticeps and BPBM 41160 is characterized as Satyrichthys cf. kikingeri. Satyrichthys laticeps is not only recorded for the first time for the Republic of the Maldives, but also complements distribution data on the species in the north-eastern Indian Ocean. Satyrichthys kikingeri, hitherto known only from a single specimen collected in 2012 from Rasdhoo Atoll in the Maldives, is now documented by a second specimen.

A sighting of four Atlantic humpback dolphins (Sousa teuszii) was recorded and photographed close to the Benin coast on 3 November 2013. This is the first record of the species for Benin, and also represents the first verified record within a 3,065 km stretch of coast extending from Sierra Leone to Nigeria (encompassing the entire northern coast of the Gulf of Guinea). The sighting supports the possibility that some other potential range states may have remained unconfirmed to date due to a paucity of field research in suitable nearshore habitat rather than an absence of the species.

The stalked barnacle Dosima fascicularis is reported from Uruguayan waters for the first time based on stranded specimens. It is suggested that the Subtropical Front is the main area of occurrence of D. fascicularis in the South Atlantic and its occurrence on the Uruguayan coast was found to be sporadic and mainly related to singular atmospheric and oceanographic factors that cast ‘blue plankton’ ashore (e.g. easterly and south-easterly winds, and prevalence of tropical waters).

We hereby provide new distributional data for alien and possible alien molluscs from the Italian seas, together with a brief review of their known Italian distribution and updated distributional maps. In particular, Haminoea cyanomarginata is confirmed for the Calabrian shores of the Strait of Messina area and is first reported from eastern and western Sicily, therefore suggesting a natural spreading into the Italian central Mediterranean Sea. Melibe viridis is confirmed for the Ionian Calabrian shores and Sardinia, where it was previously known from isolated records only. Pinctada imbricata radiata is first reported as naturally widening its distribution in Sardinia and in the Gulf of Taranto, where new populations are soon awaited, whilst Aplysia dactylomela is now expanding its range along the Italian Adriatic shores. And last, recent records of Anadara transversa from the Sabaudia Lake testify the role of lagoon systems as hot-spots for the introduction and secondary spreading of alien species, and indicate mussel aquaculture as the likely vector of introduction for its occurrence.

Eight species of alpheid shrimps are reported for the first time from the coral reef systems off Mexico's northern Yucatan Peninsula (Alacranes, Madagascar and Serpiente Reefs). These species are: Alpheus immaculatus; Alpheus paraformosus; Alpheus punctatus; Parabetaeus hummelincki; Salmoneus depressus; Synalpheus chacei; Synalpheus dominicensis; and Synalpheus elizabethae. The geographical ranges of these species are extended into the southern Gulf of Mexico; most of them are recorded from Mexican territorial waters for the first time. Brief notes on their ecology and taxonomy are provided. Six species are illustrated by colour photographs.

This paper provides the most up to date list of the Cuban echinoid fauna. Habitat, depth range, distribution and localities in Cuba are presented for this group. I present here the most recent list of shallow-water sea urchins for the Cuban Archipelago. This catalogue increases the number of shallow-water sea urchins for Cuba to 23 species (subspecies included) distributed in seven orders and 19 genera. I have added the occurrence of the sea urchin Schizaster floridiensis for Cuban shallow waters, and expand the known regional distribution range for this species. Furthermore, I report here two new depth ranges for Schizaster floridiensis and Astropyga magnifica that now begin at ten and two metres depth respectively.

The capture of a female of the bramble shark, Echinorhinus brucus, is presented. It was obtained by sport fishing in Venezuela at a depth of 200 m. Morphological identification is confirmed by comparative analysis of the mitochondrial COX1 gene sequence. This is the first record for this species in the Caribbean Sea.

Three specimens of Platyscelus armatus (Crustacea: Amphipoda: Hyperiidea: Platyscelidae) are reported from coastal waters of the Canary Islands, Spain; these are the first records from these waters. The specimens were collected south-west of Tenerife and El Hierro Islands during the ‘CETOBAPH 2012' (April 2012) oceanographic cruise. Morphological and morphometric measurements of the specimens, geographical and bathymetric distribution of this species and a key to species of the genus reported in the Canary Islands are provided.

The family Polychelidae includes thirty-eight species of blind deep-sea lobsters distributed in six genera. Five species are recorded from the south-western Atlantic region: Pentacheles laevis; Pentacheles validus; Polycheles typhlops; Stereomastis sculpta; and Willemoesia forceps. Herein we analysed material sampled in deep Brazilian waters adding the first record of Stereomastis nana to the south-western Atlantic region. An identification key to all south-western Atlantic polychelids is provided.

A spinetail devilray (Mobula japanica) was recorded for the first time in the western waters of Australia. The beach-stranded individual was observed in March 2013 on the southern coast of Western Australia (latitude 34.8811°S, longitude 118.4079°E). This is the southernmost record of this species in Australian waters. Previous Australian records of this species have been restricted to the east coast, where sightings have been within the latitudinal range of 14–33°S. The individual observed in Western Australia was a mature male, with a disc width of 257 cm. The occurrence coincided with the maximum recorded summer sea surface temperature (22.0°C) along the southern coast of Western Australia and an abnormally strong flow in the Leeuwin Current for that time of year.

Hybrid cetaceans have been documented to occur both in the wild and in captivity. Identifying wild hybrid individuals can be problematic in the absence of genetic techniques, but published accounts indicate that intermediate morphological characteristics are often present. Between 2010 and 2013, a land-based and boat-based study of the Risso's dolphin (Grampus griseus) was carried out in nearshore waters around the Eye Peninsula located on north-east Lewis, Scotland. Three atypical individuals were photographed which exhibited morphological features intermediate between Grampus and the common bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus). These individuals were typically larger in body size than Tursiops, and had a dorsal fin shape and size consistent with Grampus. Two individuals had coloration most similar to Tursiops and the third exhibited extensive white linear scarring consistent with Grampus. The intermediate morphology was most apparent in the head shape, with all three individuals exhibiting a defined (in contrast to Grampus) but very short (compared with Tursiops) rostrum and two having an unusually steep (compared with Tursiops) forehead. On one occasion, one of the atypical individuals was observed within a mixed-species school of Grampus and Tursiops. There were four further sightings of atypical dolphins associated with Tursiops-only schools. Atypical dolphins were not recorded within Grampus-only schools. These observations are consistent with hybridization between free-ranging Risso's and bottlenose dolphins, the first such occurrence to be documented for these species in UK waters. The context and significance of these hybridization events are unknown.

The north-west Atlantic amphipod Ptilohyale littoralis has been introduced to The Netherlands. After its initial discovery in the port of Rotterdam, additional specimens were collected near the national centre of shellfish trade and culture Yerseke and along the Westerschelde estuary, which leads to the port of Antwerp.

The velvet dogfish, Zameus squamulosus, is a poorly known deep water shark, known from the Atlantic, Indian, western, central and south-eastern Pacific Oceans. In this paper, the first record of the velvet dogfish, caught from the eastern North Pacific is reported. The shark, a male 533 mm in total length, was caught by bottom trawl at a depth of 770.7 m off Long Beach, California (33°43′15″N 118°32′14″W), USA.

The first record of the hen-like blenny Aidablennius sphynx from the Syrian waters is reported. Monthly fish samples were taken along the Syrian coast throughout the period 2012–2013 and 21 individuals were caught at one location only during September 2012 and September 2013. Their morphometric and meristic characteristics are reported.

Here we report on the first records of the families Parazoanthidae and Microzoanthidae and by extension for the suborder Macrocnemina (Cnidaria: Anthozoa: Hexacorallia: Zoantharia) from the Red Sea. Despite a long history of zoantharian research in the region, previous records only reported species of the suborder Brachycnemina, from the genera Zoanthus and Palythoa. Both Parazoanthus sp. and Microzoanthus sp. specimens were first found from the same small coral cave at a reef at Jaz'air Sila, Saudi Arabia, and subsequently observed at another location in the northern Red Sea. Numerous Antipathozoanthus sp. colonies were observed at Marker 9 north of Yanbu, Saudi Arabia in association with antipatharians inside small caves. The Parazoanthus sp. was in association with numerous encrusting sponge species on the roof of the cave, similar to previously reported undescribed species in the Pacific Ocean. Microzoanthus sp. was found on hard rubble on the cave floor. These records represent large range extensions (e.g. thousands of kilometres) for each genus, demonstrating the overall lack of research on the order Zoantharia, especially within the Red Sea.

We report two opportunistic and unusual observations of white-beaked dolphins (Lagenorhynchus albirostris) in the Canadian Arctic that are outside the known range of this species. Sightings occurred off the south-east coast of Baffin Island (Nunavut, Canada) in Frobisher Bay (September 2004) and Cumberland Sound (August 2013). Despite dedicated, multi-year marine mammal surveys in the region (boat-based and aerial), white-beaked dolphins have not previously been reported in the eastern Davis Strait. Our sightings suggest that white-beaked dolphins may infrequently inhabit coastal waters off south-eastern Baffin Island, and furthermore, that their habitat use may correspond with recent changes in prey distribution and availability.