The current checklist provides for each species of the Red Sea its records in the Gulf of Suez, Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea main basin and its general distribution.This new checklist of Red Sea fishes enumerates 1207 species, representing 164 families. Of these, 797 species were recorded from the Gulf of Aqaba and 339 from the Gulf of Suez. The number of species from the Gulf of Suez is evidently lower than the actual number not including 27 Lessepsian (Red Sea) migrants to the Mediterranean that most likely occur in the Gulf. The current list includes 73 species that were newly described for science since the last checklist of 2010. The most specious Osteichthyes families are: Gobiidae (134 species), Labridae (66), Apogonidae (59), Serranidae (including Anthiadinae) (44), Blenniidae (42), Carangidae (38), Muraenidae (36), Pomacentridae (35), Syngnathidae (34), Scorpaenidae (24) and Lutjanidae (23). Among the families of Chondrichthyes, the most specious families are the Carcharhinidae (18 species) and Dasyatidae (11). The total number of endemic species in the Red Sea is 174 species, of these, 34 species are endemic to the Gulf of Aqaba and 8 to the Gulf of Suez.

This checklist of the Mediterranean fishes of Israel enumerates 469 species which is an addition of 62 species since the previous checklist of 2005. This new checklist includes 58 Condrichthys and 411 Osteicthys species. Most newly-recorded species are of Red Sea origin (Lessepsian migrants)—38 species, 25 species are from previously poorly investigated habitats, mainly deep water, while two species reached the Mediterranean most likely by ballast water and two are aquaculture escapees. The dramatic increase in the number of Lessepsian migrants (an average of 2.5 species per year) is most likely due to the increased water influx between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean, following the recent opening of the new parallel, 72 km, “new canal” and the enlargement of other parts of the Suez Canal.

The Red Sea goatfish, Parupeneus forsskali, was collected for the first time off the Mediterranean coast of Israel. This finding, in addition to another specimen reported recently from Lebanon and numerous observations by underwater divers, strongly suggests that this species has established a population in the eastern Mediterranean.

The filamentous flounder Arnoglossus nigrofilamentosus n. sp. is described from four specimens collected in the southeastern Mediterranean near Tel-Aviv, Israel on 5 May 2017. The new species is characterized as follows: second to sixth dorsal-fin rays elongate and filamentous, dorsal-fin rays 78-84, anal-fin rays 61-66, pectoral-fin rays on ocular side 12-13, on blind side 7-9, caudal-fin rays iii,11,iii , lateral-line scales 52-54, gill rakers 0 + 4-5, not serrated, interorbital a narrow bony ridge without scales in the middle, interorbital width 11% to 16% of upper orbit diameter, no enlarged teeth anteriorly in upper jaw, and prevomer small, not enlarged, weakly projecting into mouth cavity; body in fresh specimens pale (may have been dark before the epidermis was abrased), head, peritoneum and vertical fins black. The new species is described and compared with similar species. Though the species has not yet been observed in the northern Red Sea, it probably originates from the Gulf of Suez, so this finding represents a probable new case of Lessepsian migration.

Despite a high species diversity, skates (Rajiformes) exhibit remarkably conservative morphology and ecology. Limited trait variations occur within and between species, and cryptic species have been reported among sister and non-sister taxa, suggesting that species complexes may be subject to stabilising selection. Three sibling species are currently recognised in the Raja miraletus complex: (i) R. miraletus occurring along the Portuguese and Mediterranean coasts, (ii) R. parva in the Central-Eastern Atlantic off West Africa and (iii) R. ocellifera in the Western Indian Ocean off South Africa. In the present study, the genetic variation at mitochondrial and nuclear markers was estimated in the species complex by analysing 323 individuals sampled across most of its geographical distribution area to test the hypothesis that restricted gene flow and genetic divergence within species reflect known climate and bio-oceanographic discontinuities. Our results support previous morphological studies and confirm the known taxonomic boundaries of the three recognised species. In addition, we identified multiple weakly differentiated clades in the Northeastern Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean, at least two additional cryptic taxa off Senegal and Angola, a pronounced differentiation of ancient South African clades. The hidden genetic structure presented here may represent a valuable support to species’ conservation action plans.