libutron: A couple of Red Sea bannerfishes, Heniochus intermedius (Perciformes - Chae
libutron: A couple of Red Sea bannerfishes, Heniochus intermedius (Perciformes - Chaetodontidae), known only in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. In 2012 a publication in the open access Journal of BioInvasions Records, unveiled the presence of Heniochus intermedius in the Mediterranean Sea. Ballast water transport has been invoked to explain the sudden appearance of H. intermedius in Turkish waters. Lessepsian migration has also been suggested as the mode of entry to the Mediterranean for H. intermedius. The latter seems to be the most probable mode of introduction to the Mediterranean, but the aquarium release hypothesis or ballast water transport cannot be completely ruled out [1]. Note: Lessepsian migration (also called Erythrean invasion) is the ongoing migration of marine species across the Suez Canal, usually from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean Sea, more rarely in the opposite direction. It is named after Ferdinand de Lesseps, the French engineer in charge of the canal’s construction [2]. Photo credit: ©Ülar Tikk -- source link