A new record of the live sharksucker, Echeneis naucrates linnaeus, 1758 (Perciformes, Echeneidae), in the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract

The present note represents a new record of the live sharksucker, Echeneis naucrates, in the Mediterranean Sea, after the last report of this species which dates back to 2016. The E. naucrates specimen has been seen during a scuba dive in an area located along the Ionian coast of Sicily (Italy). The specimen probably was in search of a host and it tried repeatedly to attach himself to the divers. Therefore, this is the first Mediterranean record in which the interaction of this species in its natural habitat has been observed, since, in the previous reports, the specimens had always been caught by nets. Finally, this note reports for the second time in the Mediterranean Sea, the presence of this oceanic species in an area with brackish waters.