A modified key for rapid determination of Blennioidea (Pisces: Perciformes) in the Adriatic Sea

Abstract

        The identification key covers 20 species of Blennioidea presently known in the Adriatic Sea, and one additional species known to occur in freshwaters. The standard format of a dichotomous bracket key was used. The key was developed in order to make the process of identification of Adriatic blennioids clear, simple and non-destructive, thus providing a small number of easily verifiable characters instead of proposing overlapping or highly variable characters. The key is also aimed at in-the-lab-training of SCUBA observers, since many biases may influence the accuracy and precision of blennioid identification when using non-destructive visual census techniques.