Crustacea Decapoda from the Rhodes Island Area (Eastern Mediterranean): New Records and an Updated Checklist

Abstract

Decapod crustaceans are ecologically and commercially important members of marine communities. Faunal surveys constitute essential tools for the understanding of local diversity, especially in areas subjected to significant alterations of community composition due to climate changes, anthropogenic impacts, and biological invasions. Following a literature review and the study of new samples, we hereby update on the Crustacea Decapoda from the Rhodes Island area (Greece), situated in a key position in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Published data yielded records of 120 species, whereas 28 taxa are recorded here for the first time from the study area. Among them, the collection of Liocarcinus bolivari widens its distribution to the eastern Mediterranean. Details on material examined and distributional/faunal remarks are provided for the species newly recorded and for some other native and alien species rarely reported from Rhodes. The present paper raises the local decapod biodiversity to 148 species, accounting for ~50% of the Hellenic Aegean decapod fauna and provides a useful baseline for analysing the long-term changes in the local fauna and the westward spreading of Lessepsian species. Despite present advances, the lack of records of many common Mediterranean species may be still due to limited fieldwork in some habitats rather than a true absence.