Macrojellyfish (Scyphozoa and Ctenophora) in Two Enclosed Marine Systems (The Sea of Marmara and Adriatic Sea): A Review

Date

2024-01-01

Author

Işinibilir Okyar, Melek
Malej, Alenka
Lucic, Davor
Vodopivec, Martin
Violic, Ivana
Karakulak, Firdes Saadet
Kıdeyş, Ahmet Erkan

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Although geographically well apart, there are interesting similarities between the ecosystems of the Sea ofMarmara and the Adriatic Sea. In this study, following an evaluation of the ecological problems as well asoceanography, productivity, plankton biomass of these seas, macro-jellyfish ecology of the two ecosystems werediscussed comparatively. The Sea of Marmara and the Adriatic Sea are among the areas where increases in jellyfishand mucilage events have been observed in recent decades. Environmental problems such as global warming, oxygendepletion, eutrophication, overfishing, intense maritime traffic, and habitat destruction are causing opportunistic andalien species to increase in both abundance and number of species. As biodiversity declines due to habitat destruction,so does the ecosystem’s means and ability to combat the invasion of alien species in both ecosystems. Accordingly,disruption of lower food chains can put pressure on the entire ecosystem and affect socio-ecological prospects. The number of species of Scyphozoa and Ctenophora was found to be higher in the Adraitic Sea compared to the Sea ofMarmara. Mass occurrences with a clear seasonal pattern and related to the geographical location were observed forAurelia aurita, Rhizostoma pulmo, Chrysaora hysoscella and non-native Mnemiopsis leidyi in the Marmara Sea.However, although A. aurita and R. pulmo show widespread blooms according to the seasons and regions in theAdriatic Sea, C. hysoscella and M. leidyi produced blooms limited to a few areas. Negative and positive interactionsof macrojelyfishes with human were also considered. Semi-enclosed seas such as the Sea of Marmara and the AdriaticSea are representative of many temperate coastal waters where climate change and anthropogenic stressors areincreasing, and the ecosystem has changed from a fish-dominated to a jellyfish-dominated ecosystem.

URI

https://iupress.istanbul.edu.tr/en/book/ecological-changes-in-the-sea-of-marmara/home
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/117304

Collections

Graduate School of Marine Sciences, Book / Book chapter