A bigfin squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana) has been spotted in Maltese waters although it is a tropical species native of the Indian and Pacific Ocean. It was first recorded in the Mediterranean in 2002 off Turkey.

Marine biologist Alan Deidun of the University of Malta thanked fisherman Matthew Gatt for alerting the Spot the Alien citizen science campaign. 

The Journal of Marine Science and Engineering reported on the discovery, and another one off Lampedusa. It explained that the Mediterranean Sea has recently been colonised by an increasing number of non-indigenous species  whose expansion is favoured by the general increase in temperatures and climate change but also by anthropogenic factors such as the widening of the Suez Canal. The establishment of some of these species appears to be successful in part due to their adaptive capacity and ability to compete with native species.

Deidun and others who co-wrote the article insist that it is very important to trace the movements and expansion of this invasive species inside the Mediterranean Sea, in order to understand if there is a risk that it could further colonize central areas and the western basin, establishing stable populations in these areas, as well as to assess its impact on native marine ecosystems.

 

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