Zoobotryon verticillatum (Bryozoa: Ctenostomatida: Vesiculariidae), a new occurrence on the Mediterranean coast of Israel

Zoobotryon verticillatum , a widely dispersed stoloniferous fouling bryozoan, has been recently recorded from specimens collected from the hulls of vessels berthed in an Israeli marina. Though conspicuous and distinctive, it has been rarely recorded in surveys of the bryozoan fauna along the Levant coastline conducted over the past half century. It is suggested the species is native to the Caribbean Sea, and an invasive alien elsewhere, including the Mediterranean Sea.