A checklist of non-indigenous marine fishes including bony, cartilaginous and jawless distributed along the Turkish Marine Waters was for the first time generated in the present study. The number of records of non-indigenous fish species found in Turkish marine waters were 101 of which 89 bony, 11 cartilaginous and 1 jawless. In terms of occurrence of non-indigenous fish species in the surrounding Turkish marine waters, the Mediterranean coast has the highest diversity (92 species), followed by the Aegean Sea (50 species), the Marmara Sea (11 species) and the Black Sea (2 species). The Indo-Pacific origin of the non-indigenous fish species is represented with 73 species while the Atlantic origin of the non-indigenous species is represented with 22 species. Only first occurrence of a species in the Mediterranean, Aegean, Marmara and Black Sea Coasts of Turkey is given with its literature in the list.

Three specimens of striped eel catfish, Plotosus lineatus (Thunberg, 1787) were caught by a spear gun at depths of 20 m on 4 April 2016 from Iskenderun Bay (Çevlik harbour), Northeastern Mediterranean coast of Turkey. With the present study, P. lineatus is the first time reported from Turkish marine waters, in the Iskenderun Bay, the Northeastern Mediterranean and also this is the first Plotosid species recorded from Turkish Seas.

A single male specimen of red lionfish Pterois volitans was recorded for the first time in 13 May 2016 from the Iskenderun Bay, North-eastern Mediterranean, Turkey. The present paper also reports the first record of the red lionfish P. volitans along the Mediterranean Sea.

In Turkish marine waters, pufferfish belongs to Tetraondontidae family are represented with 8 species, Lagocephalus lagocephalus, L. sceleratus, L. spadiceus, L. suezensis, L. guentheri, Sphoeroides pachygaster, Torquigener flavimaculosus and Tylerius spinosissimus. DNA barcoding can be useful in the assessment of cryptic or morphologically similar species of identification which is widespread in marine environment. DNA barcode identification of the eight puffer species of the Tetraodontidae family in Turkish marine waters were examined by using mtDNA sequencing of the amplified partial mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase I (COI) gene. COI contained 189 variable and 337 conservative nucleotides of which 183 were parsimony informative over 526 bp. Mean genetic diversity all species was found 0.18164. The highest and lowest nucleotide divergence was observed L.spadiceus (0.0022) and between L. sceleratus, L. suezensis, L. lagocephalus, L. guentheri and S. pachygaster (0.0000) respectively. The number of detected different haplotypes were 10 out of 23 sequences, and haplotype diversity was found to be 1.000.

Lionfishes are recognized as invasive and predatory species in the world. The genus Pterois belongs to the Scorpaenidae family has 10 confirmed species. Among them, two species Pterois miles and P. volitans were reported as non-indigenous species in Turkish marine waters. Although dorsal, pelvic, and anal fins of lionfish have venom-releasing spines which can have systemic effects such as severe pain, fever, vomiting, and dizziness, there are no reports of death by lionfish in the literature anyway. After careful removal of the venomous spines, lionfish meat is suitable for human consumption. The bioactivity of homogenates obtained from the venomous spines of lionfish has been the subject of various research since the 1950s. Until now, it has been proven that the venomous spines of the lionfish contain anticancer, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anticoagulant, antioxidant, and antibacterial compounds and can be used in biomedical applications as a natural resource of marine origin. Moreover, the spine shape of lionfish has provided inspiration that can be useful in designing reusable syringe needles and sterilizable plungers, thereby reducing biomedical waste and sharps disposal costs. Additionally, the fins and spines of lionfish, which are typically removed and discarded, are used to make jewellery. This review, therefore, focused on evaluating alternative management actions to bring these invasive fish into the economy and control their populations, owing to both their use in biomedical fields and their suitability for bioinspiration.

Indian Ocean twospot cardinalfish, Cheilodipterus novemstriatus (Ruppell, 1838), is recorded for the first time from the Turkish marine waters. Two specimens of C. novemstriatus were sampled with a purse seiner on 1 December 2014, and also a school of C. novemstriatus was photographed during scuba diving at a depth of 13 m on a rocky surface on 8 December 2014 in the Cevlik coast, Iskenderun Bay, north-eastern Mediterranean of Turkey. With the present report, the number of alien cardinal fish species reported in the Turkish coasts has reached five.