Integrating Literature, Biodiversity Databases, and Citizen-Science to Reconstruct the Checklist of Chondrichthyans in Cyprus (Eastern Mediterranean Sea)

Chondrichthyans are apex predators influencing the trophic web through a top-down process thus their depletion will affect remaining biota. Notwithstanding that, research on chondrichthyans is sparse or data-limited in several biogeographic areas worldwide, including Levantine Sea. We revise and update knowledge of Cyprus based bibliographic review that gains information retrieved from peer-reviewed grey literature, Global Biodiversity Information Facility (135 records at least 18 species) Ocean System (65 least14 species), citizen science project Mediterranean Elasmobranchs Citizen Observations (117 per 23 species). Our updated checklist reports 60 species account for about 70% chondrichthyan The list includes 15 more than previous our study three new waters, namely blackmouth catshark Dalatias licha, round fantail stingray Taeniurops grabatus, sawback angelshark Squatina aculeata. highlights need conservation measures studies regarding highly threatened blackchin guitarfish Glaucostegus cemiculus devil ray Mobula mobular, stresses importance training generation observers to strengthen elasmobranchs region.