Anali za istrske in mediteranske študije
Annali di Studi istriani e mediterranei
Annals for Istrian and Mediterranean Studies
Series Historia Naturalis, 30, 2020, 2
UDK 5                       Annales, Ser. hist. nat., 30, 2020, 2, pp. 131-290, Koper 2020  ISSN 1408-533X

KOPER 2020
Anali za istrske in mediteranske študije
Annali di Studi istriani e mediterranei
Annals for Istrian and Mediterranean Studies
Series Historia Naturalis, 30, 2020, 2
UDK 5                    ISSN 1408-533X 
                e-ISSN 2591-1783

ANNALES · Ser. hist. nat. · 30 · 2020 · 2
Anali za istrske in mediteranske študije - Annali di Studi istriani e mediterranei - Annals for Istrian and Mediterranean Studies
ISSN 1408-533X     UDK 5  Letnik 30, leto 2020, številka 2
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ANNALES · Ser. hist. nat. · 30 · 2020 · 2
Anali za istrske in mediteranske študije - Annali di Studi istriani e mediterranei - Annals for Istrian and Mediterranean Studies
UDK 5                                                      Letnik 30, Koper 2020, številka 2                                      ISSN 1408-53 3X
e-ISSN 2591-1783 
VSEBINA / INDICE GENERALE / CONTENTS 2020(2)
SREDOZEMSKI MORSKI PSI 
SQUALI MEDITERRANEI
MEDITERRANEAN SHARKS
Paraskevi K. KARACHLE, Caterina STAMOULI & 
Aikaterini DOGRAMMATZI
Review of the Sharpnose Sevengill Shark 
Heptranchias perlo (Chondrichthyes: 
Hexanchidae) in the Mediterranean: 
Historical and Recent Data .................................
Pregled o pojavljanju morskega psa 
sedmeroškrgarja Heptranchias perlo 
(Chondrichthyes: Hexanchidae) v Sredozemlju: 
zgodovinski in recentni podatki
Hakan KABASAKAL
A Historical Catch of White Shark, 
Carcharodon carcharias (Lamniformes: 
Lamnidae), in the Sea of Marmara (Turkey) 
from the 1950s ....................................................
Zgodovinski pregled ulova belega morskega 
volka, Carcharodon carcharias (Lamniformes: 
Lamnidae), v Marmarskem morju (Turčija) iz 
petdesetih let
Nexhip HYSOLAKOJ, Rigers BAKIU & 
Alen SOLDO
The First Record of Kitefin Shark 
Dalatias licha in Albanian Waters ........................
Prvi zapis o pojavljanju klinoplavutega 
morskega psa Dalatias licha v albanskih vodah
Deniz ERGÜDEN, Mahmut İĞDE, Cemal 
TURAN, Deniz AYAS & Hakan KABASAKAL
Occurrence of a Large Bigeye Thresher Shark, 
Alopias superciliosus (Lamniformes: Alopiidae), 
in the Northeastern Levantine Sea (Iskenderun 
Bay, Eastern Mediterranean Sea, Turkey) ................
Pojavljanje velike velikooke morske lisice, 
Alopias superciliosus (Lamniformes: Alopiidae), 
v severovzhodnem Levantskem morju (zaliv 
Iskenderun, vzhodni Mediteran, Turčija)
Lovrenc LIPEJ, Janja FRANCÉ, Domen TRKOV, 
Borut MAVRIČ & Aleš BOLJE
The Occurrence and Status of Thresher Shark 
(Alopias vulpinus) in Waters Off Slovenia ..............
Pojavljanje in status navadnih morskih lisic 
(Alopias vulpinus) v vodah Slovenije
Hakan KABASAKAL & Erdi BAYRI
First Record of a Young-Of-The-Year 
Carcharodon carcharias in the 
Strait of the Dardanelles  ...................................
Prvi zapis o pojavljanju prvoletnega 
belega morskega volka (Carcharodon 
carcharias) v dardanelski ožini 
Francesco TIRALONGO, Clara MONACO 
&Alessandro DE MADDALENA
Report on a Great White Shark Carcharodon 
carcharias Observed Off Lampedusa, Italy .................
Zapis o pojavljanju belega morskega volka 
Carcharodon carcharias pri Lampedusi, Italija
Hakan KABASAKAL
A Leucistic White Shark, Carcharodon 
carcharias (Lamniformes: Lamnidae), 
from the Northern Aegean Sea, Turkey ..............
Belični primerek belega morskega volka, 
Carcharodon carcharias (Lamniformes: 
Lamnidae), iz severnega Egejskega 
morja, Turčija
IHTIOLOGIJA
ITTIOLOGIA
ICHTHYOLOGY
Christian CAPAPÉ, Youssouph DIATTA, Almamy 
DIABY, Sihem RAFRAFI-NOUIRA & Christian 
REYNAUD
Leucistic Piebald Striped Panray, 
Zanobatus schoenleinii (Chondrichthyes: 
Zanobatidae), from the Coast of Senegal 
(Eastern Tropical Atlantic) ....................................
Belični primerek vrste Zanobatus 
schoenleinii (Chondrichthyes: 
Zanobatidae) iz Senegalske obale 
(vzhodni tropski Atlantik)
Fatiha DALOUCHE, Lotfi BENSAHLA-
TALET, Sidi Mohamed El Amine ABI AYAD & 
Ahmed BENSAHLA-TALET
Gonadal Development of Bogues, 
Boops boops (Linnaeus, 1758), 
from Oran Bay (Teleostei, Sparidae) .................
Razvoj gonad pri bukvi, Boops boops 
(Linnaeus, 1758), iz Oranskega zaliva 
(Teleostei, Sparidae)
201
131
147
157
187
175
151
193
165
181

ANNALES · Ser. hist. nat. · 30 · 2020 · 2
Francesco TIRALONGO & Roberto PILLON 
New Distributional Records of Gobius 
bucchichi (Pisces, Gobiidae) from the 
Mediterranean Sea and In Situ 
Comparisons with Gobius incognitus  ................
Novi podatki o razširjenosti vrste glavača 
Gobius bucchichi (Pisces, Gobiidae) iz 
Sredozemskega morja in in situ primerjave 
z vrsto Gobius incognitus
BIOINVAZIJA
BIOINVASIONE 
BIOINVASION
İnci TÜNEY-KIZILKAYA & Okan AKYOL
Occurrence of Scarus ghobban 
(Scaridae) at the Border of the Aegean 
Sea (Kaş, Turkey) .................................................
Pojavljanje modroprogaste morske 
papige (Scaridae) na meji Egejskega 
morja (Kaş, Turkey)
Argyro ZENETOS & Anastasia MILIOU
Abudefduf cf. saxatilis in the Saronikos 
Gulf, Greece: Unaided Introduction or 
Human Aided Transfer? .......................................
Abudefduf cf. saxatilis v zalivu Saronikos 
(Grčija): nenameren ali nameren vnos?
JADRANSKA MORSKA BIODIVERZITETA
BIODIVERSITÀ MARINA DELL'ADRIATICO
ADRIATIC MARINE BIODIVERSITY
Martina ORLANDO-BONACA & 
Domen TRKOV
After More Than Forty-Five Years a 
New Finding of Cystoseira foeniculacea f. 
latiramosa in the Coastal Sea of Slovenia .............
Nova najdba vrste Cystoseira foeniculacea f. 
latiramosa v obalnem morju Slovenije 
po več kot štiridesetih letih
Valentina PITACCO
First Record of the Echiurid 
Maxmuelleria gigas (M. Müller, 1852) 
in Slovenian Waters (Northern Adriatic) ...............
Prvi zapis o pojavljanju zvezdaša 
Maxmuelleria gigas (M. Müller, 1852) 
v slovenskih vodah (severni Jadran)
FLORA
FLORA
FLORA
Amelio PEZZETTA
Le Papaveraceae Juss. della Flora Italiana: 
Distribuzione Regionale e Considerazioni 
Fitogeografiche ...................................................
Družina Papaveraceae Juss. v italijanski 
flori: regionalna razširjenost in 
fitogeografska opredelitev
Toufik CHEDADI, Omar IDRISSI, 
Anas ELKHABLI, Youssef KHACHTIB, 
Abdelmajid HADDIOUI & 
Mohammed EL HANSALI
Morphological Characterization of 
Orobanche crenata in Carrots and 
Legumes (Faba Bean and Chickpea): 
Indications of Potential Genetic 
Differentiation Towards Host Plants .................
Morfološka opredelitev vrste Orobanche 
crenata pri korenju in stročnicah (bob 
in čičerika): pokazatelji možne genetske 
diferenciacije proti gostiteljskim rastlinam
OCENE IN POROČILA
RECENSIONI E RELAZIONI
REVIEWS AND REPORTS
Lovrenc Lipej
Book review: ICHTHYOFAUNA OF THE 
ADRIATIC SEA ....................................................
Lovrenc Lipej
Book review: KNIGHTS, BALLERINAS 
AND INVISIBLES: THE DECAPOD 
CRUSTACEANS OF THE BRIJUNI 
MARINE PROTECTED AREA ................................
Alenka Malej
Book review: BIODIVERZITETA BIOGENIH 
FORMACIJ. ZAKLADNICA NARAVE 
SLOVENSKEGA MORJA .......................................
POPRAVKI IN DOPOLNILA 
ERRATA CORRIGE
ERRATA & CORRIGENDA
Corrigendum to “Capture of a Large Great White 
Shark, Carcharodon carcharias (Lamnidae) from 
the Tunisian Coast (Central Mediterranean Sea): 
a Historical and Ichthyological Event”, Annales, 
Series Historia Naturalis, 2020, 30(1), 9-14 .........
Kazalo k slikam na ovitku ....................................
Index to images on the cover ...............................
265
245
215
223
227
239
283
233
284
289
290
290
285

ANNALES · Ser. hist. nat. · 30 · 2020 · 2
165
received: 2020-10-14                 DOI 10.19233/ASHN.2020.19
THE OCCURRENCE AND STATUS OF THRESHER SHARK 
(ALOPIAS VULPINUS) IN WATERS OFF SLOVENIA
Lovrenc LIPEJ, Janja FRANCÉ, Domen TRKOV & Borut MAVRIČ 
Marine Biology Station Piran, National Institute of Biology, Fornače 41, Piran, SI-6330
e-mail: lovrenc.lipej@nib.si
Aleš BOLJE
Fisheries Research Institute of Slovenia, Spodnje Gameljne 61a, Ljubljana-Šmartno, SI-1211
ABSTRACT
The authors report data on common thresher sharks, Alopias vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788) caught in Slovenian 
territorial waters. The sharks were captured largely during summer months, mainly August. Over the past five 
years three cases of immature sharks were recorded, which additionally confirms the fact that the area of northern 
Adriatic Sea is a nursery for thresher shark. The authors try to assess the current level of knowledge of thresher 
sharks based on older and recent landings and sightings of the species in the territorial waters of Slovenia. 
Key words: thresher shark, Alopias vulpinus, incidental catches, feeding habits, nursery, northern Adriatic 
PRESENZA E STATO DELLO SQUALO VOLPE (ALOPIAS VULPINUS) IN 
ACQUE AL LARGO DELLA SLOVENIA
SINTESI
Gli autori riportano i dati sulle catture dello squalo volpe, Alopias vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788), nelle acque 
territoriali slovene. Gli squali sono stati catturati soprattutto durante i mesi estivi, principalmente in agosto. 
Negli ultimi cinque anni sono stati registrati tre casi di squali immaturi, dato che inoltre conferma che l‘Adriatico 
settentrionale è un area di riproduzione dello squalo volpe. Gli autori cercano di valutare l‘attuale livello di 
conoscenza sugli squali volpe in base ai dati degli sbarchi e degli avvistamenti più vecchi e recenti della specie 
nelle acque territoriali della Slovenia.
Parole chiave: squalo volpe, Alopias vulpinus, catture accidentali, abitudini alimentari, area di riproduzione, 
Adriatico settentrionale

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Lovrenc LIPEJ et al.: THE OCCURRENCE AND STATUS OF THRESHER SHARK (ALOPIAS VULPINUS) IN WATERS OFF SLOVENIA, 165–174
INTRODUCTION
Thresher sharks (Alopiidae) are powerful large-
sized pelagic sharks with an extremely long heter -
ocercal tail. Two of them, the common thresher shark, 
Alopias vulpinus (Bonnaterre, 1788), and the bigeye 
thresher shark, Alopias superciliosus Lowe, 1841, are 
commonly recorded in the Mediterranean Sea. The 
common thresher shark is a mesopredator inhabiting 
temperate and subtropical waters (Compagno, 1984; 
Barrull & Mate, 2002; Gervelis & Natanson, 2013), 
widespread in the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian Oceans, 
and in the Mediterranean. It is often associated with 
areas characterized by high biological productivity 
(Cartamil et al., 2010). Young specimens mainly occur 
in shallow waters, whereas adults are more common 
over the continental shelf (Compagno et al., 1989). At 
least one record of bigeye thresher shark (A. supercil-
iosus) has been reported in the southern Adriatic to 
date (Madiraca et al., 2015). 
With regard to the abundance of common thresher 
shark in the Adriatic Sea in the past, the information 
is contrasting. Faber (1883), for example, reported 
that it was “general, but rare”, while Brusina (1888) 
mentioned it was not rare. In more recent reports the 
common thresher shark is considered a regularly oc-
curring species in the Adriatic Sea (Tortonese, 1956; 
Bini, 1967; Lipej et al., 2004), especially in its northern 
part (Notarbartolo di Sciara & Bianchi, 1998; Lipej, 
1999). However, recently published evidence seems 
to suggest that its population in the northern Adriatic 
Sea (Finotto et al., 2016) and other areas (Ferretti et 
al., 2008) is facing a substantial decline. 
Together with some other rare and large-sized 
sharks, the common thresher shark is among the least 
studied species in the Mediterranean Sea (Kabasakal & 
Kabasakal, 2004; Kabasakal, 2007; Dimarchopoulou 
et al., 2017; Mancusi et al., 2020, and others). One of 
the aims of this paper is therefore to present a survey 
of new and older data on the occurrence of thresher 
shark in the Slovenian sea and its adjacent areas, and 
discuss the recent status of this epipelagic mesopreda-
tor in the closer and broader Adriatic areas. 
MATERIAL AND METHODS
On 10
th
 August 2020 a small-sized thresher 
shark was captured in bottom trawl 4 Nm off Izola, 
between Cape Ronek (Izola) and Koper, at approxi-
mately 20 m depth on muddy bottom. The specimen 
was delivered to the fishing port of Izola, where it 
was measured and weighed. After the specimen was 
dissected, its stomach was isolated and stored in a 
deep freezer for a diet analysis. In the laboratory, the 
full stomach was weighed and its content washed 
through sieves. Prey specimens were isolated and 
cautiously measured to the nearest 0.01 mm with 
a calliper and weighed (wet weight) to the nearest 
0.01 g using a Sartorius TE 1502S balance. Two 
weeks later, on 24
th
 August 2020, another immature 
specimen was caught 3 Nm out off Izola. Of that, 
however, we were only able to obtain a photograph 
and data on the main body dimensions and weight 
provided by the fisherman who captured it. Both 
specimens were sold for human consumption. 
Nowadays, a valuable source of data is informa-
tion shared through modern technology tools, such 
as the internet and the social media, which complete 
the traditional knowledge of the fishermen (sensu 
Raicevich et al., 2010). We tried to collect all data 
published in the newspapers and on social media 
sites about thresher sharks in the territorial waters of 
Slovenia from 1900 to 2020. We also checked the 
available databases on fish landings of the Bios web 
(www.biosweb.org) of the Fisheries Research Institute 
of Slovenia (Bolje et al., 2020).  
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The two specimens caught in 2020 were identified 
as A. vulpinus on the basis of the following diagnostic 
characters (Compagno, 1984): head broad with short 
snout, forehead strongly arched, flanks above pectoral 
bases marked with a conspicuous white patch extend-
ing forwards from the abdominal area, no deep hori-
zontal grooves on either side of the nape (typical of A. 
superciliosus), eyes not reaching the dorsal surface of 
the head. 
Tab. 1: Biometric parameters of the immature specimen 
caught in the waters off Ronek on 10th August 2020. 
Tab. 1: Biometrični parametri mladostnega primerka, ujete-
ga pri rtu Ronek 10. avgusta 2020.
Biometric parameter mm/kg
Fork length (mm) 1024
Prepectoral length 243
Prebranchial length 199
Preorbital length 43
Predorsal length 484
Prepelvic length 697
Precaudal length 982
Upper caudal lobe 836
Total length 1860
Eye diameter 25
Weight 30 kg

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Lovrenc LIPEJ et al.: THE OCCURRENCE AND STATUS OF THRESHER SHARK (ALOPIAS VULPINUS) IN WATERS OFF SLOVENIA, 165–174
The first specimen was an immature male with a 
total length of 186 cm, weighing approximately 30 kg 
(Tab. 1). The second specimen caught was of a similar 
size and weighed 30 kg. We were unable to determine 
its sex from the photograph alone.
The analysis of the stomach content showed the 
presence of three small pelagic fish species, in vast 
majority (80.7% in terms of numerical abundance 
N% and 74.9% in terms of biomass B%) pilchard 
(Sardina pilchardus), the rest were anchovy (Engraulis 
encrasicolus) (N% = 15.8 and B% = 22.7) and Atlantic 
horse mackerel (Trachurus trachurus) (N% = 3.5 and 
B% = 2.3; Tab. 2). Only a few diet studies have been 
performed to date, but according to the available 
information the thresher shark preys mainly on small 
pelagic fish such as anchovies, sardines, mackerels 
and cephalopods (Young et al., 2015). The thresher 
shark is often recorded together with large schools of 
Fig. 1: Adult specimens of thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus) caught in Slovenian territorial waters. Legend: 
a – a 450 cm long specimen caught on 23rd September 1996 (Photo: B. Šuligoj), b – a 430 cm long specimen 
caught near Lazaret on 31st December 1997 (Photo: B. Šuligoj), c – a 350 cm long specimen caught on 19th 
August 2010 in the waters off Izola (Photo: L. Lipej), and d – a 370 cm long specimen caught on 25th May 2004 
(Photo: L. Lipej). 
Sl. 1: Odrasli primerki navadne morske lisice (Alopias vulpinus), ujeti v slovenskih teritorijalnih vodah. Legen -
da: a – 450 cm dolg primerek, ujet 23. septembra 1996 (Foto: B. Šuligoj), b – 430 cm dolg primerek, ujet blizu 
Lazareta 31. decembra 1997 (Foto: B. Šuligoj), c – 350 cm dolg primerek, ujet 19. avgusta 2010 v vodah blizu 
Izole (Foto: L. Lipej), in d – 370 cm dolg primerek, ujet 25. maja 2004 (Foto: L. Lipej). 

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Lovrenc LIPEJ et al.: THE OCCURRENCE AND STATUS OF THRESHER SHARK (ALOPIAS VULPINUS) IN WATERS OFF SLOVENIA, 165–174
small pelagic fish (Preti et al., 2001), on which it feeds 
close to the surface, stunning them with its tail-slaps 
(Aalbers et al., 2010). Finotto et al. (2016) stated that 
the presence of thresher shark in the northern Adriatic 
Sea is positively correlated with the abundance of 
the species’ preferred prey in the area, the European 
sardine. 
In the summer months of 2020, adult common 
thresher sharks were also sighted in the adjacent 
Italian waters of the Gulf of Trieste. In July 2020 a 
400 cm long shark was caught and filmed near Tri-
este and subsequently released (Anonymous, 2020). 
In the very same period (19
th
 July 2020) another 
specimen of common thresher shark, estimated at 
approximately 300 cm fork length, was captured and 
subsequently released in the waters of the Quarnaro 
archipelago in Croatia (Tomljanović, 2020). 
Checking the published data in newspapers, web 
sites and the social media 10 reports were found 
regarding thresher sharks in Slovenian waters in 
the past thirty years. If we also take into account 
the two immatures from 2020, we have 12 records 
of common thresher sharks in total (Tab. 3). The 
great majority of the reported sharks were adults, 
measuring from 350 cm to 500 cm in total length 
(Fig. 1). Most of the recorded thresher sharks were 
captured or sighted during the months of August and 
September, which corresponds well with seasonality 
recorded by Finotto et al. (2016) for the Italian part 
of the northern Adriatic Sea. Generally, much larger 
thresher sharks would be reported from Slovenian 
waters. Apart from the common thresher sharks re-
corded in August 2020, only one specimen, captured 
on 18th August 2015, was small, reaching 150 cm in 
total length. 
During the last five years the Statistical Office 
of the Republic of Slovenia reported on landings of 
thresher sharks every year except 2016. The biomass 
reported in 2015 was 6.5 kg, which fits well with 
the small-sized specimen mentioned above. Ac-
cording to the length vs age relationship examined 
in age and growth studies by many authors (Cailliet 
et al., 1983; Mendizabal & Oryza, 1995; Smith et 
al., 2008; Gervelis & Natanson, 2013) the specimens 
with a fork length of approximately 100 cm could be 
considered as 1 to 2 years old and the one shorter 
than 100 cm as less than one year old. Pups at birth 
measure approximately 60 to 70 cm in fork length 
(Cartamil et al. 2010). According to the von Berta-
lanffy growth model, the estimated size at birth of 
common thresher shark is between 114 and 156 cm 
total length (Bigelow & Schroeder, 1948; Compagno, 
1984; Moreno et al., 1989). Thus, the specimen 
caught in August 2015 could be regarded as a neo-
nate thresher shark (Fig. 2). 
The Gulf of Trieste and the northern Adriatic Sea 
may act as a nursery area for certain elasmobranch 
species, as was previously already pointed out by 
several researchers (e.g. Notarbartolo di Sciara & 
Bianchi, 1998; Jardas et al., 2008; Fortuna et al., 
2010). A nursery area is an environment where juve-
nile sharks and other elasmobranchs are supported 
by available food and reduced predation (Cartamil 
et al., 2010). The area is productive, diversified in 
terms of habitat, and rather shallow (less than 30 m 
of depth). We have collected many neonates and 
immature elasmobranchs in the Gulf of Trieste that 
were captured as bycatch. Neonate specimens of 
sandbar shark (Carcharhinus plumbeus (Lipej et al., 
2000, 2008)), smoothhound (Mustelus mustelus), 
punctulated smoothhound (Mustelus punctulatus), 
pelagic stingray (Pteroplatytrygon violacea), starry 
skate (Raja asterias), marbled electric ray (Torpedo 
marmorata) and others were recorded in Slovenian 
coastal sea (unpublished data). Many blue sharks 
(Prionace glauca) less than 80 cm in total length 
have been caught as bycatch in the area. As for the 
adjacent regions, Fortuna et al. (2010) reported 13 
common thresher sharks that were caught in the 
period between July 2006 and December 2008, 10 
in the Veneto region and 3 in the Emilia Romagna 
region. 
Many authors point out the fact that nowadays 
large sharks seem to be restricted to the eastern and 
southern Mediterranean Sea (Sperone et al., 2012). 
Barausse et al. (2014) considered the common 
thresher shark and other large-sized shark meso-
Tab. 2: The stomach content of the immature thresher 
shark specimen caught on 10th August 2020. Legend: 
N – number of specimens of a particular prey species, 
B – biomass of all weighed specimens of a particular 
species, N% and B% relative abundance and biomass, 
respectively. 
Tab. 2: Vsebina želodca mladostnega primerka morske 
lisice, ujetega 10. avgusta 2020. Legenda: N – število 
primerkov posamezne vrste plena, B – biomasa pri-
merkov posamezne vrste plena, N% in B% relativna 
abundanca in relativna biomasa plena. 
Species N N% B B%
Trachurus trachurus 2.0 3.5 8.1 2.3
Sardina pilchardus 46.0 80.7 258.3 74.9
Engraulis 
encrasicholus
9.0 15.8 78.3 22.7
sum 57 100 344.7 100

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Fig. 2: Immature specimens of thresher shark (Alopias vulpinus) caught in Slovenian territorial wa-
ters. Legend: a – immature specimen caught on 18th August 2015 (Photo: S. Radin), b – immature 
specimen caught on 10
th
 August 2020 (Photo: J. Francé), and c – immature specimen caught on 
24th August 2020 (Photo: I. Virant). 
Sl. 2: Mladostni primerki navadne morske lisice (Alopias vulpinus), ujeti v slovenskih teritorialnih vo -
dah. Legenda: a – mladostni primerek, ujet 18. avgusta 2015 (Foto: S. Radin), b – mladostni primerek, 
ujet 10. avgusta 2020 (Foto: J. Francé), in c – mladostni primerek, ujet 24. avgusta 2020 (Foto: I. Virant). 

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predators to have been largely depleted even before 
1945 in the western part of the northern Adriatic Sea 
due to intensive exploitation. The study on the oc-
currence of thresher shark in the northern Adriatic 
Sea based on landings data (Finotto et al., 2016) 
suggests the main cause of the decline of common 
thresher sharks to be their mortality in commercial 
target and bycatch fisheries. In addition, the majority 
of the specimens caught were juveniles (app. 90 %) 
and many of them weighed less than 10 kg (Finotto 
et al., 2016). According to Moreno et al. (1989) this 
size is close to their size at birth. Hattour & Na-
kamura (2004) reported that small-scale fishery in 
Tunisian waters was targeting neonate specimens of 
thresher shark. Finotto et al. (2016) considered food 
availability to be a strong driver of the presence of A. 
vulpinus in the northern Adriatic Sea. 
The data on thresher shark in Slovenian marine 
waters, provided from different sources, show that 
the species is still present at least in summer months; 
however, there is a substantial lack of knowledge 
regarding basic data. Although the available data 
are mostly related to adult thresher sharks, they 
also include records of immature specimens and, in 
one case, a neonate. The rapid decline of common 
thresher shark during the last 75 years in the northern 
Adriatic Sea as reported by Finotto et al. (2016) is 
calling for urgent conservation measures. The com-
mon thresher shark is, like the majority of sharks and 
other elasmobranchs, a typical K-selected species, 
characterised by a slow population growth and long 
generation time. The species is nowadays listed on 
the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species as “vulner -
able” to global extinction (Goldman et al., 2007). The 
national Red List of marine fishes of Croatia (Jardas et 
al., 2008) also defines the status of common thresher 
shark as “vulnerable”. In Italy, A. vulpinus has mark-
edly decreased in abundance and is considered “criti-
cally endangered” (Rondinini et al., 2013). In the Act 
on Protected Animal Species of Slovenia, the common 
thresher shark is not mentioned. 
To date, no attempts have been made in the 
northern Adriatic Sea to prepare some conserva-
tion measures to reduce the fishing mortality. An 
immediate release of the still living captured shark 
specimens should become a practice. Since many 
arguments point out the importance of the northern 
Adriatic Sea as a nursery area for thresher shark and 
many other elasmobranch species, the countries 
sharing the northern Adriatic should adopt suitable 
legal acts and efficient conservation instruments for 
their protection. One of the first promising measures 
regarding thresher shark conservation at a national 
level would be a complete ban on its fishing in 
Slovenian waters. As this species is only caught 
as bycatch and captures are rare and as such not 
Tab. 3: Documented evidence of the occurrence of thresher shark in Slovenian waters during the past 25 years. 
Tab. 3: Dokumentirani primeri pojavljanja morske lisice v slovenskih vodah v zadnjih petindvajsetih letih. 
n date locus record sex
TL 
(cm)
Weight
(kg)
Photo/Source
1 20 Aug 1995 Slovenian marine waters Caught ? 400 194 Dulčić & Lipej, 2002
2 22 Aug 1995 Bay of Piran Sighted ? 400 ? Newspaper Delo
3 15 Sep 1995 Cape Ronek (near Izola) Caught ? 500 300 Dulčić & Lipej, 2002
4 24 Sep 1996 Fiesa Caught ? 450 300 Fig 1/a; Dulčić & Lipej, 2002
5 31 Dec 1997 Lazaret Caught ? 430 230 Fig. 1/b; Dulčić & Lipej, 2002
6 25 Aug 2001 Bay of Piran, Slovenian waters Caught ? 430 270 Dulčić & Lipej, 2002
7 2 Jan 1998 Lazaret (Koper) Caught ? 430 200 Newspaper Delo
8 26 May 2004 Bay of Piran Caught ? 370 200 Fig 1/d; Newspaper Delo
9 19 Aug 2010 Gulf of Trieste, off Izola Caught ? 350 155 Fig 1/c; Newspaper Delo
10 18 Aug 2015 3 Nm, Slovenian waters Caught ? 150 6.5 Fig 2/a; Biosweb, M. Radin
11 10 Aug 2020 Cape Ronek (Izola) Caught M 186 30 Fig 2/b; This work
12 24 Aug 2020 3 Nm off Izola Caught M 187 30 Fig 2/c; This work

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financially important, a management strategy based 
on the release of the still living specimens should be 
developed.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to express our sincere gratitude 
to Boris Šuligoj, a reporter of the Slovenian daily 
newspaper Delo, who provided us with data, news 
and photographs regarding the studied specimens 
of thresher sharks in this work. We would like to 
thank Robert Turk, MSc., who enlighted us with 
information regarding the legal status of sharks spe-
cies in Slovenia. Special thanks also to our colleague 
Milijan Šiško for his help and support in preparing 
the manuscript. We would like to thank Mr. Sandi 
Radolovič who helped us with the measurements 
of thresher sharks. In addition we wish to express 
our gratitude to fishermen S. Radin and I. Virant 
who provided us with photographs and information 
regarding captured sharks. Last but not least, a prom-
iseful student Ana Lokovšek from the University of 
Primorska helped us a lot with the diet analysis and 
prey specimen weighing.

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POJAVLJANJE IN STATUS NAVADNIH MORSKIH LISIC 
(ALOPIAS VULPINUS) V VODAH SLOVENIJE
Lovrenc LIPEJ, Janja FRANCÉ, Domen TRKOV & Borut MAVRIČ 
Morska biološka postaja Piran, Nacionalni inštitut za biologijo, Fornače 41, Piran, SI-6330
e-mail: lovrenc.lipej@nib.si
Aleš BOLJE
Zavod za ribištvo Slovenije, Spodnje Gameljne 61a, Ljubljana-Šmartno, SI-1211
POVZETEK
Avtorji poročajo o pojavljanju navadne morske lisice (Alopias vulpinus) na podlagi ribiških ulovov v slovenskih 
teritorijalnih vodah. Morske lisice so bile ulovljene praviloma v poletnih mesecih, predvsem avgusta. V zadnjem 
petletju so se v ribiške mreže zapletli trije mladostni primerki, ki še dodatno potrjujejo dejstvo, da je Severni Jadran 
razmnoževalno okolje navadne morske lisice. Avtorji nadalje poskušajo oceniti poznavanje stanja navadnih morskih 
lisic v slovenskem morju na podlagi razpoložljivih recentnih in starejših podatkov.
Ključne besede: morska lisica, naključni ulov, prehranjevalne navade, jaslice, Severni Jadran 
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