Too hot for comfort – shallow water populations of the spiny rock oyster Spondylus spinosus (Spondylidae) obliterated by unprecedented heatwaves in the SE Mediterranean Sea

Shallow water Spondylus spinosus Schreibers, 1793 populations at sites along the northern and central coast of Israel suffered catastrophic mortality following a succession of heatwaves in summer 2024, culminating in a prolonged heatwave in August (air temperature 36 to 38 °C, sea surface temperature 32°C). With the projected rise in both mean temperature, and prevalence, duration, and severity of extreme high temperature events in the easternmost Mediterranean Sea, it is likely that even Erythraean species may endure mortality events.