A Record of Fish Anomaly from the Sea of Marmara, Turkey: European Hake (Merluccius merluccius Linnaeus, 1758) Missing the Right Eye

Abstract

Abnormalities of shape, color or body deformities such as lack of swim bladders or any parts of the body are an unexplained issue for many fish species. There is a gap of knowledge regarding their causes. Generally, it is an important problem in the rearing technique in aquaculture management due to the high economic consequences. The morphological abnormalities occur in marine fishes as well. Missing dorsal spines or rays, scale disorientation, jaw deformities, eye deformations and the lack of some parts of the body are within the context of abnormality. In the present study, the body abnormality observed in a specimen of European hake (Merluccius merluccius Linnaeus, 1758) missing its right eye which was caught by a fisherman in the Marmara Sea on 13 October 2020, and its causes are reported and discussed. Further studies are needed to correlate the wild fish anomalies caused by pollution.