Ongoing tropicalization of marine fishes: is range expansion and establishment occurring in the Gulf of Cadiz (southernmost Europe)?
‘Tropicalization’, the phenomenon of species shifting their ranges, has become increasingly prevalent as a response to environmental modifications induced by global change. This study points to an accelerated tropicalization process of marine fish species in the Gulf of Cadiz, a bioinvasion hotspot...
| Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Status: | Published version |
| Publication Date: | 2025 |
| Country: | España |
| Institution: | Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC) |
| Repository: | DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:digital.csic.es:10261/392704 |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10261/392704 |
| Access Level: | Open access |
| Keyword: | Alien Biological invasion Exotic First record Iberian Peninsula Sciaenid fish |
| Summary: | ‘Tropicalization’, the phenomenon of species shifting their ranges, has become increasingly prevalent as a response to environmental modifications induced by global change. This study points to an accelerated tropicalization process of marine fish species in the Gulf of Cadiz, a bioinvasion hotspot adjacent to the Strait of Gibraltar. We report accelerated, unusual, and rare occurrences of 15 fish species expanding and potentially establishing their ranges in the Gulf of Cadiz, driven by ocean warming over the past decade. These new insights are the combined consequence of a range expansion of some species, likely facilitated by temperature increases, an intensification of maritime traffic (with a consequent rise in propagule pressure), and a possible increase in sampling efforts and citizen science. |
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