EASIN - European Alien Species Information Network

Kostas Tsiamis
12/12/2017 - 11:42 AM

Thread Opening Text:
Dear Editorial Board Member,

Regarding the species Halitiara inflexa, it has been reported from Lebanon by Goy et al. 1991, but cannot trace the publication to check if there is any documentation provided. Should the species be considered as alien-casual or as questionable (pending taxonomic confirmation of its presence in Europe)?

Thank you for your collaboration.

Stefano PIRAINO
1/29/2018 - 4:43 PM

Halitiara inflexa has been reported in the Mediterranean waters in:
Goy J., Lakkis S., Zeidane R. (1991) Les méduses (Cnidaria) des eaux Libanaises. The medusae (Cnidaria) of Lebanese
waters. Annales de l’Institut Océanographique de Monaco, 67, 99–128.
I can send a pdf of this article upon request (stefano.piraino@unisalento.it). The paper deals with gelatinous plankton collection from 1969 to 1989. along the coast of Lebanon, mostly on the water column 0-50 m depth. Halitiara inflexa is described as follows: "Chez cette espèce, les exemplaires ont de 2 à 3 mm de haut. Entre les 4 bulbes marginaux, les 6 petits tentacules sont plus longs que chez H. formosa, les gonades volumineuses adhèrent également à la partie superieure des canaux." This description does not overlap with H. formosa, a circum-tropical species widely recorded in the Mediterranean, which is characterized by a pear-shaped umbrella, with a solid apical projection. Therefore, H. inflexa can be considered as reliable record for the Eastern Med, but given the absence of additional records, it should be considered as casual. Nonetheless, absence of records may depend also by the absence of qualified observers.

Kostas Tsiamis
1/30/2018 - 1:55 PM

Thread Closing Text:
Species to remain in the EASIN Catalogue marked as alien (casual)

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