First record of the Alboran dragonet, Protogrammus alboranensis (Actinopterygii: Callionymiformes: Callionymidae), from the Balearic Islands (western Mediterranean)

Abstract

Background. The Alboran dragonet, Protogrammus alboranensis Fricke, Ordines, Farias et García-Ruiz, 2016, was originally described based on four specimens from Alboran Island, Spain, south-western Mediterranean, collected in 2014 and 2015. This species was previously considered to be endemic to Alboran Island. A surprising new record of this rare species from the Balearic Islands is reported here. Materials and methods. A specimen of P. alboranensis was collected from a bottom trawl sampling carried out at 159 m depth in the north of Mallorca, Balearic Islands, during the survey MEDITS_ES05_17 in June 2017. The specimen (a male) has been deposited in the collection of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJ). Results. Protogrammus alboranensis is recorded from the Balearic Islands for the first time; the specimen is examined, described and illustrated. Conclusion. The new record confirms that the species is more widely distributed in the western Mediterranean than previously expected. This type of study is needed to know about the distribution and habitats of this rare species, to support possible conservation measures. The depth of collection and the benthic habitat in the sampling location were similar to those in the location of the original description of the species (Alboran Island): deep shelf bottoms with biogenic coarse sand and presence of abundant dead shells in both locations. The colouration of the species is highly mimetic with that type of sediments indicating that this is probably the ideal habitat for the species.

Keywords

• fish
• Spain
• Balearic Sea
• distribution
• endemism