An annotated checklist of dinoflagellates in the Black Sea

An annotated checklist of free-living dinoflagellates (Dinophyceae) of the Black Sea, based on literature records, is reported and compared to the Mediterranean Sea and world oceans. Toxic species and/or responsible of harmful algal blooms (HAB) are marked in the checklist. From the 267 species ( 54 genera) listed nearly all taxa can be considered as cosmopolitan and no species as endemic. Several typically Arctic-boreal species (non recorded from the Mediterranean Sea) are reported from the Black Sea. The taxonomy and the biogeography of the taxa are discussed.