Economic costs of non-native species in Türkiye: A first national synthesis.

Biological invasions are increasingly recognised as a major global change that erodes ecosystems, societal well-being, and economies. However, comprehensive analyses of their economic ramifications are missing for most national economies, despite rapidly escalating costs globally. Türkiye is highly vulnerable to biological invasions owing to its extensive transport network and trade connections as well as its unique transcontinental position at the interface of Europe and Asia. This study presents the first analysis of the reported economic costs caused by biological invasions in Türkiye. The InvaCost database which compiles invasive non-native species' monetary costs was used, complemented with cost searches specific to Türkiye, to describe the spatial and taxonomic attributes of costly invasive non-native species, the types of costs, and their temporal trends. The total economic cost attributed to invasive non-native species in Türkiye (from 202 cost reporting documents) amounted to US$ 4.1 billion from 1960 to 2022. However, cost data were only available for 87 out of 872 (10%) non-native species known for Türkiye. Costs were biased towards a few hyper-costly non-native taxa, such as jellyfish, stink bugs, and locusts. Among impacted sectors, agriculture bore the highest total cost, reaching US$ 2.85 billion, followed by the fishery sector with a total cost of US$ 1.20 billion. Management (i.e., control and eradication) costs were, against expectations, substantially higher than reported damage costs (US$ 2.89 billion vs. US$ 28.4 million). Yearly costs incurred by non-native species rose exponentially over time, reaching US$ 504 million per year in 2020-2022 and are predicted to increase further in the next 10 years. A large deficit of cost records compared to other countries was also shown, suggesting a larger monetary underestimate than is typically observed. These findings underscore the need for improved cost recording as well as preventative management strategies to reduce future post-invasion management costs and help inform decisions to manage the economic burdens posed by invasive non-native species. These insights further emphasise the crucial role of standardised data in accurately estimating the costs associated with invasive non-native species for prioritisation and communication purposes.

The morphology and mitochondrial DNA barcode of Knipowitschia caucasica (Berg, 1916) (Gobiiformes: Gobiidae) from Karpuzay, Levantine Sea, the easternmost record of Knipowitschia species in the Mediterranean Sea.

Knipowitschia is a sand-goby genus historically comprising 17 species. The congeneric Knipowitschia species show discordance between morphology and genetics in two ways: the morphologically similar species that are clearly distinct by genetics and the morphologically and ecologically distinct populations that are similar by genetics. A sample of Knipowitschia individuals has been collected from Karpuzay Creek on the Levantine Sea coast. It is the easternmost Mediterranean record of any Knipowitschia, and a number of arguments suggest it is native. Among the presently valid Knipowitschia species, the population was identified by both genetics and morphology as K. caucasica. The detailed morphological description and genetics are provided for this population. The morphology of the present sample fits within the highly variable morphology of east Aegean populations presently recognized as K. caucasica, although with the extreme values of the already known morphological and coloration variability.

[The occurrence of helminth parasites in Vimba (Vimba vimba L. 1758) of Golbasi (Bursa) Dam Lake, Turkey]. / Gölbasi Baraj Gölü (Bursa)'ndeki Egrez Baliklari (Vimba vimba L. 1758)'nda Görülen Helmint Parazitler.

In this study, the occurrence of helminth parasites in Vimba of Golbasi Dam Lake was investigated monthly from May 2003 to April 2004. During the study, a total of 62 Vimba specimens were examined for helminth parasites. A total of 4 species of helminth parasites were found on 43 fish examined as follows: (Dactylogyrus sphyrna (Monogenea), Diplostomum sp. (Digenea), Caryophyllaeus laticeps (Cestoda), Contracaecum sp. (Nematoda). D. sphyrna seen on gills of host fish was the dominant parasite species found in Vimba. A total of 308 parasites were recorded on 30 of the 62 fish examined (48.39%). The second dominant species was Diplostomum sp. of which 233 were found in the eye lens of 29 of the 62 hosts examined (46.77%). C. laticeps was the third dominant parasite in this study and a total of 37 parasites were recorded in 8 of 62 fish (12.90%). As to Contracaecum sp., only 4 specimens were found in 3 fish (4.84%).