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Abstract
The examination of benthic material collected from different depths and habitats along the southern coast of Turkey (Levantine Sea, eastern Mediterranean) in September and October 2005 revealed 30 alien polychaete species belonging to 15 families. Thirteen species (Pisione guanche, Linopherus canariensis, Onuphis eremita oculata, Lumbrineris perkinsi, Dorvillea similis, Timarete caribous, Pherusa parmata, Pherusa saldanha, Streblosoma comatus, Polycirrus twisti, Laonome triangularis, Branchiomma bairdi and Janua steueri) are new to the Mediterranean fauna, 24 species are new to the Turkish fauna and 27 species are new to the Levantine coast of Turkey. The specimens collected from the Levantine coast of Turkey and northern Cyprus that were previously identified as Linopherus acarunculata and Branchiomma boholense are reidentified as L. canariensis and B. bairdi, respectively. In the light of present knowledge, the previous reports of Lumbrineris inflata and Streblosoma hesslei from the Mediterranean (Italian coast) could refer to the species L. perkinsi and S. comatus, respectively. The species new to the Mediterranean Sea are redescribed and discussed.
Acknowledgements
I am much indebted to colleagues at the Department of Hydrobiology, Ege University for help in collecting and sorting the benthic material; to Dr Veysel Aysel (Turkey) for the identification of algae and phanerogame species; to Emma Sherlock (NHM, United Kingdom) for loaning the paratype of Pherusa saldanha; to Dr Chris Glasby (Australia) for comments on the Polycirrus species; to Dr Tovar-Hernandez (Mexico) for confirming the identification of Branchiomma bairdi; to two anonymous referees for their constructive comments on the manuscript. This work has been financially supported by TUBITAK (Project Number: 104Y065).