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Confirmed Occurrence of Mola mola (Linnaeus, 1758) from Mersin Bay (Northeastern Mediterranean)

In June 2018, a single female specimen of the Ocean sunfish, Mola mola (Linnaeus, 1758) (122 cm in total length and 80 kg in weight) was caught by a commercial trammel net at a depth of 393 m in Mersin Bay (Bozyazi coast), Turkey. This paper presents the first substantiated occurrence and hence, the confirmation of M. mola in the Northeastern Mediterranean, Turkey. Morphological and meristic measurements of the specimen were made and recorded with the catalog number MEUFC-18-11-101 in the Museum of the Systematic in, Mersin University’s Faculty of Fisheries. Morphometric and mer-istic data matched other recordings of this species from parts of the Mediterranean, and the histor-ical captured record of the species in the Mediterranean was documented.


INTRODUCTION
The ocean sunfish, Mola mola (Linnaeus, 1758) is an oceanodromous, pelagic-oceanic species belonging to the Molidae family, and is the largest and most fecund Teleost fish in the world (Pope et al., 2010). Ocean sunfish are a generally solitary and highly migratory fish species, found in subtropical waters between depths of 30-480 m (Fricke, Kulbicki, & Wantiez, 2011). This species is distributed in the temperate and tropical regions of the Mediterranean, Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans (Sims & Southall, 2002;Froese & Pauly, 2019).
In Turkish waters, M. mola has previously been found in the Mediterranean Sea (Akyuz, 1957;Basusta & Erdem, 2000), and the Aegean Sea (Akşıray, 1958). Bilecenoglu et al. (2014) mentioned M. mola found in the northern Aegean Sea and the Marmara Sea in the marine checklist. M. mola was further documented off the Rize coast (Turkey) in the Black Sea (Öztürk & Özbulut, 2016). However, morphometric and meristic characteristics of the species among those that were caught were not recorded.
While M. mola has been found and documented in the Mediterranean Sea in Turkey in previous years (Bilecenoglu, Kaya, Cihangir, & Çiçek, 2014;Öztürk & Özbulut, 2016), this species is ex-tremely rare in the northeastern part of the Mediterranean Sea. M. mola has not been previously documented in the Bay of Mersin.
This study aims to confirm its occurrence with some morphological properties from the Bozyazı coast (Mersin Bay, Northeastern Mediterranean). Additionally, historical records of ocean sunfishes in the Mediterranean coast will be discussed.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area: The present study documents the findings of one ocean sunfish, M. mola, in the Bozyazı coast, Mersin Bay, Turkey ( Figure 1) in June 2018. Bozyazı coast is an area on the Northeastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey with a highly productive coastal bottom, which promotes the development of plankton and is suitable for trawl fishing.
Sampling: One female specimen of M. mola (Linnaeus, 1758) was caught by a trammel net on 05 June 2018 in the Bozyazı Coast (Mersin Bay) (Coordinate: 36°05'15.2"N 32°58'28.7"E). This specimen was preserved in 4% formalin and deposited in the Museum of the Systematic, Faculty of Fisheries, Mersin University, (catalog number: MEUFC-18-11-101). Morphometric and meristic characters of this specimen are given in Table 1 and the sampling point of the species in the Mediterranean coast of Turkey is presented in the map (Figure 1). A photograph of the caught specimen is shown in Figure 2.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
In this study, a female individual (total size of 122 cm, weighing 80 kg) of M. mola was caught from the Bozyazı coast in June 2018. Some morphometric and meristic measurements of this individual were made and are presented in Table 1 Table 1). The historical captured record of the species in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea is documented in Table 2.
Ocean sunfish have a large body that is compressed and ovular. The scaleless body is covered with extremely thick, elastic skin and irregular patches of tubercles over their body (Hutchins, 2004;Wheeler, 1969;Smith, 1965). The dorsal and anal fins of ocean sunfish are tall, and the pectoral fins point toward the dorsal fin. The caudal fin is replaced by a rudder-like structure called 'clavus'. Its mouth is very small and its teeth are fused to form a beak-like structure (Hutchins, 2004). Gill openings are reduced to a small hole at the base of the pectoral fins.
Adult ocean sunfish do not possess a lateral line, and only one gill opening is visible on each side, located near the base of the pectoral fins (Hutchins, 2004;Smith & Heemstra, 1986). Adults do not have a caudal fin or caudal peduncle. Instead, they have a clavus, which is a truncated tail, used more like a rudder than for propulsion. The clavus reaches from the rear edge of the dorsal fin to the rear edge of the anal fin (Wheeler, 1969;Hutchins, 2004). There is no swim bladder in adults.
Ocean sunfish vary in coloration, though the head, back, tips of the anal and dorsal fins and clavus are generally a mixture of dark grey-brown and dark silvery grey (Hutchins, 2004;Humann & Deloach, 2002). They have a white belly and sometimes have white splotches on their fins and dorsal side (Humann & Deloach, 2002).
Molas are distinguished by their distinct morphological characteristics, which include reduced/fused caudal elements, presence of a clavus in place of the caudal fin, absence of a swim bladder, and a degenerate, cartilaginous skeleton (Pope et al., 2010). Adults are found on slopes adjacent to deep water where they come in for shelter and for seeking cleaner fishes (Kuiter & Tonozuka, 2001). They swim upright and close to the surface. The dorsal fin often protrudes above the water (Pope et al., 2010). Molas may contain the same toxin as puffers and porcupine fish (Parsons, 1986;Bayhan & Kaya, 2015).  To date, there is little information available about the habitat, ecology, and population of M. mola. This species is listed as Vulnerable (VU) in the Global Red List by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, IUCN (IUCN, 2018;Liu et al., 2015) and considered as Data Deficient (DD) in the Mediterranean Sea (Abdul Malak et al., 2011). Marine ecosystems are greatly affected by bottom trawling in Turkish coasts, which destroys benthic and pelagic fauna (Abdul Malak et al., 2011). The coastal bottom of the Bozyazı coast, located in the northeastern Mediterranean Sea, is suitable for trawl fishing. According to Sims & Southall (2002) and Houghton et al. (2006), sightings of M. mola at temperate latitudes are more common in summer months. Therefore, populations of M. mola can be said to increase in higher seawater temperatures in this region (Turan, Erguden, & Gurlek, 2016). Furthermore, as Turkey's Mediterranean coast provides suitable areas for feeding, it is a migration destination for M. mola.

CONCLUSION
Although M. mola is not a commercial target species, taken as by-catch during commercial trawling, it is important for the biodiversity of Mersin Bay and Turkish ichthyofauna. Besides, this record is significant because the last capture record of M. mola in the region was made over 34 years ago in the Mediterranean coastal waters of Turkey. Therefore, the species is considered as exceptionally rare in the Mediterranean region of Turkey.

Conflict of interests:
The authors declare that for this article they have no actual, potential or perceived conflict of interests.
Ethics committee approval: Ethics committee approval is not required.