Presence of Ranzania laevis (Pennant, 1776) in Iskenderun Bay, Turkey

Abstract

Two specimens of slender sunfish R. laevis were recorded from two locations in İskenderun Bay at depths between 0 and 24 m. The first specimen, a female, was collected via purse seine net during a benthic survey carried out in Iskenderun coast on April 2016, and the other specimen, a male, was caught at the sea surface by gill net from the Payas coast on May 2018. The fishes were 565 mm and 375 mm in total length (TL) and 4450 g and 1750 g total weight (TW), respectively. Morphometric measurements and meristic counts of the fishes are detailed and presented in this paper. This is the first substantiated confirmation of Ranzania laevis from the Northeastern Mediterranean Sea. © 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.