Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758

Saad, Adib, Çiçek, Erdoğan, Esmaeili, Hamid Reza, Fricke, Ronald, Sungur, Sevil & Eagderi, Soheil, 2023, Freshwater fishes of Syria: a revised and updated annotated checklist- 2023, Zootaxa 5350 (1), pp. 1-62 : 47

Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758 [N]—Three-spined stickleback; None

Taxonomy. Original description: Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758: 295 [Europe; syntypes: ZSL 29 (left halfskin), 30-31 (2, right half-skins)].—Syrian synonyms: None.—Revisions: None.—Illustration: Kottelat & Freyhof (2007: 492, fig.).

Status in Syria. First record from Syria by Gruvel (1931); confirmed by Beckman (1962: 154) as Gasterosteus argyropomus, Krupp & Coad (1985: 36) ; Krupp & Schneider (1991b); Saad (2005).—Syrian material: CMN.

Distribution and habitat. Distribution in Syria: Mediterranean watersheds.—Distribution in River Basin: 6- Coastal.—General distribution: North Pacific; Atlantic; Baltic Sea; North Sea; Mediterranean Sea; Sea of Marmara; Black Sea and adjacent watersheds; Sea of Japan; widespread in northern Europe, northern Asia and North America.—Distribution in Ecoregion: 436-Coastal Levant.—Habitat: This species is typically found in quiet, weedy pools and backwaters. It is also found in the marginal vegetation of streams and over sand and mud bottom substrates. Marine populations are pelagic and usually found inshore along the coast, in estuaries, and in coastal lagoons. In some lakes, two morphologically and ecologically distinct forms may occur, differing in habitat and morphology (one littoral, the other mainly limnetic). Freshwater, brackish, marine.

Economic importance. No commercial importance.

Conservation. Conservation status in Syria: Unknown.—IUCN: LC ( IUCN 2023).—Threats: COM, EUT.—Low sensitivity to human activities.—Not considered as a keystone species.—Decline status: Unknown.—Low priority for conservation action.