Species composition of crustaceans in deep-sea trawl catches off Syria

This study investigates the biodiversity of crustaceans in the deep waters off the coasts of Latakia-Jableh and Baniyas of Syria. Samples were collected over 15 survey days in two periods: 12 days during 2014–2015 and three days in February, March and April 2021, using trawl nets at depths ranging from 300 to 650 meters. Additional benthic samples were collected from deep waters off Baniyas at a depth of 500 m. Only 22 crustacean species were found. The shrimps Aristaeomorpha foliacea (Risso, 1827) and Aristeus antennatus (Risso, 1816) were the most abundant, accounting for nearly 70% of the catch at a depth of ≈450 m, followed by Parapenaeus longirostris (Lucas,1846) at approximately 25%. Field data revealed the widespread presence of five alien crustaceans in the survey area, including Charybdis (Goniohellenus) longicollis Leene, 1938, Metapenaeus monoceros (Fabricius,1798), Penaeus pulchricaudatus Stebbing, 1914, Penaeus semisulcatus (De Haan,1844) and Erugosquilla massavensis (Kossmann, 1880). The results documented the presence of some rare crustaceans in Syrian deep waters. The current data can be used in any future national project to manage marine biological resources or to adapt to the impacts of climate change on marine fisheries.