Abstract
The weakfish Cynoscion regalis is a sciaenid native to the northwest Atlantic, along the North American coast. It was reported for the first time outside its native distributional range in a Belgian estuary in 2009. Six specimens were captured in different locations of northwestern Spanish Atlantic waters in 2016. They were identified by examining morphological traits and DNA sequences within a taxonomic integrative context. A revision of the records of this non-native species in European coastal waters was also carried out. The fact that various specimens of weakfish have been captured in the last 7 years, along with a wide distribution range, could indicate rapid expansion and colonization processes along the northeastern Atlantic coasts.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to Jose Carlos García Lemos (vessel “O Vilela”) and “Confraría de Cangas” staff for providing the specimen and data of C. regalis from the Ría de Vigo and to Manuel and Bernardo Riveira Vale (vessel “Hermanos Riveira”) and “Confrarías de O Vicedo and Celeiro” staff for providing the specimen and data of C. regalis from the Ría de O Barqueiro. Thanks also go to Alberto Arias, Diego Arana, and José Antonio Cuesta for providing sequences and information of this species from the Gulf of Cádiz. This study was partially financed by the Agreement between CSIC and Xunta de Galicia to analyze fisheries-dependent data from the monitoring program of small-scale fisheries in Galicia (Agreement no. 070401150009).
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Communicated by O. A. Bergstad
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Bañón, R., Barros-García, D., Gómez, D. et al. Evidence of a rapid colonization of the Atlantic European waters by the non-native weakfish Cynoscion regalis (Perciformes: Sciaenidae). Mar Biodiv 48, 2237–2242 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-017-0738-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12526-017-0738-8