Objective: The current investigation was conducted to identify existing fish culture practise, livelihood condition of fish farmers, and the major challenges faced by fish farmers in Bhaluka upazila, Bangladesh.Materials and Methods: Data were collected through surveys, monitoring, and participatory rural appraisal (PRA) tools like focus group discussions (FGD), using a pre planned questionnaire survey. A group of 5 fish farmers was interviewed from each of the six villages.Results: In the study, majority of fish farmers were between the ages of 41 and 60 years. Fish farming was their major occupation; however, they did not receive any formal training in fish culture. Fish ponds were large (> 4000 m2) and medium in depth (1-2 m), and the most popular fish culture system was polyculture. Commercial feeds were used to supply nutrients, fertilisers (organic and inorganic) were also applied to the pond water to produce natural food. Salt, lime, zeolite, potassium permanganate, and oxygen tablets were used to maintain water quality. Epizootic ulcerative syndrome, argulosis, and tail and fin rot are most prevalent in the winter. Increasing feed costs, lack of financial support, and disease outbreaks were critical challenges in fish farming in the study area. The socioeconomic status of fish farmers was found to improve with fish farming.Conclusion: Fish farming substantially improved the livelihoods of fish farmers in the study area, despite many constraints. Government support, including microcredit support, the supply of high-quality inputs, including fish fry, feed, vaccinations, and the provision of training facilities could increase fish production in the region.

Objective: The Mediterranean black widow spider; Latrodectus tredecimguttatus (Rossi, 1790) could reasonably be regarded by many health practitioners as living solely in Southern Europe. However, its range extends well beyond the Mediterranean, into central Asia, and reaches parts of China. In this article, we detected this species in Jordan for the first time and confirmed the diagnosis by DNA barcoding. This is also the first clinically significant envenomation case in Jordan. Materials and Methods: The spider was identified using DNA analysis which was extracted using a Qiagen DNeasy Blood and Tissue Kit following the standard protocol. PCR reactions were conducted in 20 µL volumes using 1 µL of DNA template, a final concentration of 0.5 µM of each primer. Cycling conditions consisted of an initial activation at 95°C for 15 min, then 35 cycles of denaturation at 95°C for 30 s, annealing at 45°C for 30 s and elongation at 72°C for 1 min with a final elongation at 72°C for 10. Successful PCR reactions were cleaned using Clean NA Clean PCR magnetic beads (GC Biotech) using the standard PCR cleanup protocol. Bi-directional sequencing was conducted at Genewiz UK. Results: The species was identified using morphological and molecular data. The clinical process was evaluated including the symptoms, medical treatment, and the use of Ferula assa-foetida as self-medicated traditional medicine. Discussion: The first record of this spider is very important for the contribution of the biodiversity of Jordan. In addition, due to its medical importance, the envenomation case and its treatment with Freula are important for local practitioners. Such medically important animals and related cases need to be documented for public health. It is necessary to recognize the existence of venomous spiders in Jordan, and to study their patterns of bites. We also propose a set of recommendations for communities and local hospitals including the necessity of hospitalization and antivenin administration for patients exhibiting serious symptoms. Conclusion: It is important to document envenomation accidents, symptoms, and treatment protocol. Furthermore, traditional medicine practices should be reported as they can interfere with or even hinder medical treatment. The results of this article will certainly apply to a wider range of countries in the region.

A few specimens of the pelagic octopod Argonauta argo (Linnaeus, 1758) were found after they were washed up by currents along the northern beach of the Gulf of Aqaba in Jordan. This article describes this record and provides a review of the species’ sightings worldwide and their importance as prey in maintaining an ecological balance.

Amaç: Bu çalışmada Karasu Deresi’nde yaşayan Barbus cyclolepis Heckel, 1837 ve Gobio bulgaricus Drensky, 1926 türlerinin bazı büyüme özellikleri mevsimsel olarak incelenmiştir. Materyal ve Yöntem: Örnekleme mevsimlik olarak (Ağustos 2017, Kasım 2017, Ocak 2018, Şubat 2018, Nisan 2018) elektroşok aracılığıyla gerçekleştirilmiştir. Her mevsimi temsil edecek örneklemeler arka arkaya 3 gün tekrarlanmıştır. Elde edilen B. cyclolepis ve G. bulgaricus bireylerinin boy, ağırlık, yaş, eşey dağılımları, yaş-boy, yaş-ağırlık, boyağırlık ilişkileri ve Fulton kondisyon faktörü değerleri incelenmiştir. Bulgular: İncelenen B. cyclolepis bireyleri 0-III yaş gruplarındadır. Standart boy değerleri 3,5-13,5 cm; ağırlık değerleri ise 1,2232-50,8213 g arasında değişmiştir. Dişi:erkek oranı 1:0,94 olarak saptanmıştır. Tüm bireylerde; boy-ağırlık ilişkisi W= 0,0253*SL2,9226 olarak belirlenmiştir. Yaşa göre en düşük kondisyon faktörü değeri, III yaş grubunda (1,982) dişi bireylerde, en yüksek kondisyon faktörü değeri I yaş grubunda (2,288) erkek bireylerde bulunmuştur. G. bulgaricus türünün yaş dağılımı ise I-IV yaş grupları arasında değişmektedir. Standart boy değerleri 2,5-9,6 cm; ağırlık değerleri ise 0,2989-18,3014 g arasında değişmiştir. Dişi:erkek oranı 1:1,56 olarak saptanmıştır. Tüm bireylerde; boy-ağırlık ilişkisi W= 0,0209*SL3,0081 olarak belirlenmiştir. Yaşa göre en düşük kondisyon faktörü değeri, II yaş grubunda (1,950) erkek bireylerde, en yüksek kondisyon faktörü değeri IV yaş grubunda (2,191) dişi bireylerde bulunmuştur. Sonuç: Bu çalışma sonucunda Karasu deresinde yaşayan Barbus cyclolepis ve Gobio bulgaricus türlerinin kimi büyüme özellikleri ilk defa incelenmiştir.

This study was carried out to re-evaluate the geophyte samples found in the Herbarium of Harran University (HARRAN) between 2018 and 2020. 850 plant samples belonging to geophytes found in Harran Herbarium were examined. Plant samples consisting of 11 families and 146 taxa belonging to 33 genera were identified. The families with the most taxa among the identified samples are Amaryllidaceae (32), Asparagaceae (30), Liliaceae (18), Iridaceae (24), Orchidaceae (8) and Araceae (8). The richest species in terms of taxa number are: Allium L. (28), Ornithogalum L. (13), Gagea Salisb. (8), Iris L. (11) and Bellevalia Lapeyr. (5). 19 of these taxa are endemic to Turkey. In the evaluations made in HARRAN herbarium, it was determined that 18 taxa fell into synonyms.