Zirler Rotem, Schmidt Lisa-Maria, Roth Lachan, Corsini-Foka Maria, Kalaentzis Konstantinos, Kondylatos Gerasimos, Mavrouleas Dimitris, Bardanis Emmanouil, Bronstein Omri
School of Zoology, Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
The Steinhardt Museum of Natural History, Tel Aviv University, Israel.
R Soc Open Sci. 2023 May 24;10(5):230251. doi: 10.1098/rsos.230251. eCollection 2023 May.
The sea urchin is an ecological key species across its range, particularly on coral reefs. In 2006 was first observed in the Mediterranean Sea, and since, it has proliferated to occupy the entire Levantine Basin. Here we report the mass mortality of the invasive in the Mediterranean Sea. This is the first report of mass mortality. The mortality spans over 1000 km along the Levantine coast of Greece and Turkey. The current mortality shows similar pathologies to previously reported mass mortality events, suggesting pathogenic infection as the cause of mortalities. Maritime transport, local currents, and fish predation of infected individuals may distribute pathogens at varying geographical scales. Due to the proximity of the Levantine Basin to the Red Sea, the risk of pathogen transport to the native Red Sea population is imminent-with potentially catastrophic consequences.
海胆在其分布范围内是一种生态关键物种，尤其是在珊瑚礁上。2006年首次在地中海被观测到，自那时起，它已扩散至占据整个黎凡特盆地。在此我们报告了地中海入侵海胆的大规模死亡事件。这是海胆大规模死亡的首次报告。此次死亡事件沿着希腊和土耳其黎凡特海岸绵延超过1000公里。当前的死亡情况显示出与先前报道的海胆大规模死亡事件相似的病理特征，表明致病感染是死亡的原因。海上运输、局部洋流以及对受感染个体的鱼类捕食可能在不同地理尺度上传播病原体。由于黎凡特盆地靠近红海，病原体传播到红海本地海胆种群的风险迫在眉睫，可能会带来灾难性后果。
