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Anwar M.J. Al-Maliky Khaled Kh. Al-Khafaji Tariq H. Al-Maliky

Abstract

The present study identifies one species of the genus Octopus in the order: Octopoda (Cephalopoda: Mollusca), recorded for
the first time in the Iraqi coastal waters and Arabian-Persian Gulf. The study extended from January 2019 to December of the
same year. The Octopus specimens were seasonally obtained from the fishing trawlers operating in the Iraqi coastal waters in
the South of Al- Fao District, Basrah- Iraq, NW Arabian Gulf. The Octopus was identified as O. vulgaris in Iraqi coastal waters
depending on morphological features. The habitats of living specimens are briefly described. Some observations were reported on the occurrence of this species and the measurement of some environmental factors. The species was identified up to spe-
cies level using standard literature. This species looks similar morphologically to the species which is already identified from the other areas around the world. The present study records significant expansion in the distribution range of this species.

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Keywords

First record, Cephalopoda, Octopodidae, Octopus vulgaris

References
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Section
Research Articles

How to Cite

First record of Octopus vulgaris (Cuvier, 1797) (Octopodidae) in the Iraqi coastal waters, NW Arabian Gulf. (2021). Journal of Applied and Natural Science, 13(3), 1048-1051. https://doi.org/10.31018/jans.v13i3.2815