AUTHOR=Eduardo Leandro Nolé , Bertrand Arnaud , Lucena-Frédou Flávia , Villarins Bárbara Teixeira , Martins Júlia Rodrigues , Afonso Gabriel Vinícius Felix , Pietsch Theodore Wells , Frédou Thierry , Di Dario Fabio , Mincarone Michael Maia TITLE=Rich and underreported: First integrated assessment of the diversity of mesopelagic fishes in the Southwestern Tropical Atlantic JOURNAL=Frontiers in Marine Science VOLUME=9 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2022.937154 DOI=10.3389/fmars.2022.937154 ISSN=2296-7745 ABSTRACT=
Mesopelagic fishes play critical ecological roles by sequestering carbon, recycling nutrients, and acting as a key trophic link between primary consumers and higher trophic levels. They are also an important food source for harvestable economically valuable fish stocks and a key link between shallow and deep-sea ecosystems. Despite their relevance, mesopelagic ecosystems are increasingly threatened by direct and indirect human activities while representing some of the largest and least understood environments on Earth. The composition, diversity, and other aspects of the most basic biological features of numerous mesopelagic groups of fishes are still poorly known. Here, we provide the first integrative study of the biodiversity of mesopelagic fishes of the southwestern Tropical Atlantic (SWTA), based on two expeditions in northeastern Brazil in 2015 and 2017. A full list of mesopelagic fishes of the region is provided, including rare species and new records for the Brazilian Exclusive Economic Zone and the indication of potentially new species in groups such as the Stomiiformes and Beryciformes. Key aspects of the diversity of mesopelagic fishes of the region were also assessed, considering different depth strata and diel periods. At least 200 species, 130 genera, 56 families, and 22 orders of the Teleostei and one shark (