Rafting is proposed as the mechanism of dispersal influencing the speciation and population structure of Hippocampus. Recently, rafting was confirmed in Hippocampus patagonicus by the direct observation of juveniles attached to floating debris. This study discusses the implications of the record of an individual in deep waters, suggesting that the species can disperse away from their coastal populations.

The first observation of the common bobtail squid Sepietta oweniana has been made in the Barents Sea (Tromsø Bank; 70°54′N 19°46.8′E). It is the northernmost area of this species distribution. No changes were found in the reproductive system structure. But the food spectrum was changed, particularly, juvenile fish of the Lotidae family was found. The bobtail squid of the Sepiolinae subfamily have never been recorded as fish eaters previously. The expansion of boreo-subtropical species of cephalopods into the Arctic during the last decade can be divided into two groups: (1) a foraging migration happening relatively regularly; and (2) a range expansion due to the ongoing Arctic warming. The case of S. oweniana obviously belongs to the second group.

Aggregates of the Polychaeta Phyllochaetopterus socialis were recorded for the first time off Gemlik Bay in the Sea of Marmara, in August 2008. These were found at about 53 m depth, on the soft sediments around the sub-sea part of the North Anatoly Earthquake Fault. Samples were landed by beam trawl. Total wet weight of the mats was 58 kg. Forty-three species belonging to 10 phyla associated with P. socialis were recorded from the whole landing materials. Echinodermata and Gastropoda were the most abundant (12 and 8 species, respectively). Shannon–Wiener diversity and Margalef species richness indices were applied to analyse the structure of benthic communities. Presence and abundance lognormal distribution of the species and communities in mat habitat are shown. The hydrographic environment of the water mass is also discussed.

This is the first record of Grammonus robustus from Indian waters. Five specimens measuring 132–233 mm standard length were collected from the by-catch landed by a deep sea trawler from waters 150 to 200 m deep off the Tuticorin coast in the Gulf of Mannar. The detailed morphometric and meristic characters are compared to known G. robustus material.

Neanthes rubicunda is a little-known nereidid species, with an east Atlantic, Mediterranean and north-west Indian Ocean distribution. The species was investigated in the Strait of Messina (Italy) from 1993 to 2008 during two ship grab and dredge sampling surveys, and ad hoc SCUBA diving, which provided data on its mesoscale and microscale distribution patterns. Depth distribution was shallower (from 4 to 60 m) and average individual size was more than 50% greater with respect to other Mediterranean populations. The species had average density of 4.1 ± 2.7 ind m−2, from a minimum of 0.15 ind m−2 within 20 m depth to a maximum of 16 ind m−2 up to 60 m. The distribution was asymmetrical on the opposite coastal sides of the Strait of Messina, in accordance with local hydrology and sea floor morphology. Coarse, current-swept sediments represent the elective habitat of N. rubicunda, whose settlement beneath and in the upper side of boulders might represent a strategy to contrast sea floor instability. Gut content, mainly constituted by algal thalli (90%) proved Halopteris filicina, Halopteris scoparia and Jania rubens the most frequently ingested seaweeds. Such algae were also found attached to the worm tube-opening, testifying for an algal-gardening behaviour with a prevalent trophic function. Fertile individuals were observed in May, June and July (sea temperature from 17 to 21°C).

A specimen of the Mocosa ruff Schedophilus haedrichi was collected at a depth of 295–350 m from off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. This specimen constitutes the first record of the species in Costa Rican waters and a north-west range extension of about 750 km on known distribution. A brief description of the specimen as well as comparative morphometric data and distributional information are proposed.

The capture of one specimen of Chilomycterus spinosus mauretanicus from the Andalusian coast (Alboran Sea, western Mediterranean) represents the first record in Mediterranean waters.

An ovigerous Maja spider crab was captured during a fishery research cruise in the North Alboran Sea, western Mediterranean, near the city of Malaga. From morphological characters this individual was identified as Maja brachydactyla. Prior to the specimen being returned alive back to sea, it was measured, photographed, and a portion of a pleopod excised for genetic analysis. The latter confirmed the identification as correct. An additional seven specimens collected from Caleta de Velez in the vicinity of Malaga were morphologically examined, confirming the presence of M. brachydactyla in the Alboran Sea. This finding would represent the first evidence of the species occurring in the western Mediterranean Sea, with apparently well-established populations.

This study aimed at describing the quantitative variations of epiphytic diatoms in Rhodophyta Galaxaura rugosa, collected in the Fernando de Noronha archipelago (north-eastern Brazil), during two annual periods (June 2006 and June 2007). The distribution of epiphytic diatoms in G. rugosa confirmed the occurrence of a quantitative variation/zoning along the thallus of the analysed host, with an increase in density (cells per gram wet weight of seaweed) of apical portions towards the basal parts of the seaweed, regardless of the collection points and the annual periods. The abundance was characterized by individuals with pennate symmetry with raphe, belonging to the Bacillariophyceae class. This fact is the result of the host being collected in an insular environment with great water movement under the direct action of trade winds and ocean currents for most of the year. The study confirmed that in marine ecosystems with strong hydrodynamics, epiphytic flora tends to comprise species with the largest adhesive strength.

There is a worldwide concern about the expansion of non-indigenous species because they may threaten local biodiversity as some of them may successfully outcompete native species. We report on the presence of two introduced mud worm species, Boccardia proboscidea and Boccardiella hamata, in the southern North Sea, where the former species has been discovered on groynes along the Belgian coast and both species were detected among Pacific oysters Crassostrea gigas in the south-western Dutch delta. Boccardia proboscidea is native to the North Pacific and was first detected in Europe along the Spanish Basque coast in 1996. Our record is the third for European waters and the first for the North Sea. Although B. proboscidea occurs in limited numbers and in ephemeral habitats along the Belgian coast, the species probably has established a permanent population, since it has been reported repeatedly after its first discovery in January 2011. Boccardiella hamata is native to the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America. This species has never been recorded from Europe before.Our research demonstrates that in under-studied habitats, such as man-made hard substrata, even well-established populations of newly introduced species may stay undetected. Due to a lack of monitoring of these particular habitats and insufficient knowledge about introduced biota, introduced species may pass unnoticed or may be overlooked for several years. A dedicated monitoring will be necessary to detect introduced species in an early stage. In view of the upcoming Marine Strategy Framework Directive requirements such monitoring will be inevitable.

The blue and yellow damselfish Chromis limbaughi is a species protected by the Mexican federal government due to its commercial relevance as an aquarium fish. In this paper we present new records of the species at 17 locations north of its accepted northernmost distribution limit. Because of the abundance, relative occurrence, and the presence of adults and juveniles in the new sites, these might represent reproductive populations. It is probable that the species has settled successfully there in recent years by taking advantage of the warming of the region reported in the last decade.

The aim of the study was to investigate the benthic foraminiferal fauna around the mineral water spring in Pamucak Cove, north-west Kuşadası (Aydın) and figure out the effects of the spring on the fauna. The spring was located 200 m off the coast at 12.4 m depth and its temperature was 19.6°C. The study area was found to include a rich population of Red Sea originated Amphistegina lobifera, of which the distribution pattern is noteworthy. It is abundant in the centre of the spring and its close vicinity; its abundance decreases when getting away from the spring. It is more abundantly observed on the southern and western sides of the spring, whereas, it is outnumbered by Ammonia compacta and Elphidium crispum on the northern and eastern parts. The water currents around the spring were in north–south and north–west directions. The observed diverse diatom population around the spring constitutes the main food source and dispersal according to the currents may explain the reason for the abundance of the Amphistegina population on the southern and western sides of the study area. High abundances of A. lobifera have not yet been observed elsewhere in the Aegean Sea, although large populations of this species have been recorded on the south-west coasts of Turkey and in several stations on the south-east of Gokceada. Abundance of coloured individuals and Red Sea originated benthic species suggests the presence of special environmental as well as ecological conditions around the spring.

Holothuria (Holothuria) dakarensis (Holothuroidea: Holothuriidae) is recorded for the first time in the south-western Atlantic, from mangroves in Macau, Rio Grande do Norte State, and deposited in the Coleção de Invertebrados Paulo Young, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Brazil.

The Bahamian archipelago is one of the richest regions in the Caribbean province and its importance as a hot spot of biodiversity and potential centre of origination of new species in the tropical western Atlantic has been suggested. In this paper I report on the sea slugs collected during a field trip to Eleuthera Island, the Bahamas. Animals were collected from the intertidal down to five metres deep by direct sampling. Nineteen species of opisthobranchs were found including two new records to the Bahamas (Berghia stephanieae and Gastropteron vespertilium) and three putatively new species of Haminoea. Colour variation was detected on adults of the species Chelidonura hirundinina and Bulla occidentalis, the latter suggesting isolation across a reduced geographical scale. Ontogenetic variation in Philinopsis cf. pusa was found and is here documented. The uniqueness of the Bahamian biodiversity is highlighted.

Manefish are not very common and there are few observations of associations with other organisms. An adult of the manefish Paracaristius maderensis and a juvenile of Paracaristius sp. are reported for the first time for the Pacific coast of Central America. The adult specimen (215 mm standard length) was captured off Panama, at a depth of 1000 m. The juvenile specimen (17.5 mm standard length) was recorded on video, in association with the siphonophore Praya reticulata at Isla del Coco National Park, Costa Rica, at a depth of 100 m. A brief description of specimens supporting this record as well as comparative morphometric data and distributional information are provided. The fish–siphonophore association is illustrated.

Two species of limid clams, Acesta sphoni and Acesta mori, were observed and sampled from seven localities in the Gulf of California, Mexico. The two species are known to occur on seamounts and escarpments along the north-eastern Pacific margin of the United States. This report provides the first records of each species in the Gulf of California and the greatest depth records for both species. Though they occasionally overlap geographically, the two species are clearly stratified by depth, with A. sphoni occupying shallower and warmer, hypoxic waters, and A. mori occupying deeper and colder, oxic waters. The species are easily distinguished morphologically. The shells of A. mori have very fine radial ribbing for a smooth appearance and are more rounded and inflated, whereas those of A. sphoni are narrower and more elongate with 31 to 77 strong radial ribs. The largest individuals sampled were A. sphoni. For each species, DNA analyses revealed arrays of mitochondrial haplotypes similar to those found previously at north-eastern Pacific localities along the California, Oregon and Washington margins, providing no evidence for geographical subdivision throughout this newly extended range.

Observations, photographs, and video footage of a 337 cm total length female smalltooth sand tiger shark, Odontaspis ferox made at a depth of 348 m on the northern slope of San Ambrosio Island in the Desventuradas Islands (26°19.456′S 79°52.281′W) on 25 February 2013 represent not just the first record of this species in Chilean waters, but the first in the entire south-eastern Pacific Ocean, marking a tremendous range extension of this species. We also summarize the few known occurrences of this species along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts of South America.

Polycerella emertoni and Favorinus ghanensis were originally described from Connecticut and Ghana respectively. While the last species has been found only twice since it was described, P. emertoni has already been reported in the eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean (Portugal, Gulf of Cadiz and Gulf of Naples). In this paper, we provide new records of both species from the region of Agadir (Morocco). Since the specimens studied in this paper were collected within harbour areas, we suggest shipping activities as the most plausible vector of introduction.

Some shells of Ophieulima minima are reported from the Tuscan archipelago. This is the first record of the genus Ophieulima from the Mediterranean Sea. Hypotheses about its host are considered.

Herein, we describe the use of scars to photo-identify the goliath grouper, Epinephelus itajara. Three individuals were photo-identified and re-sighted several times at the same site along the Brazilian coast, including the longest report for site fidelity, with more than four years.