Transcript Marine_Invasives_3_11x

Invasive Species
Monday, March 14th, 2011
Invasive species
 “non-native (or alien) to the ecosystem under consideration
and whose introduction causes or is likely to cause economic
or environmental harm or harm to human health.”
 Non-native
 Introduced via vector
 Established populations
 Harm caused
Invasive species
 A disturbance may be required to allow a population to go from an invading
propagule to a locally sustaining population
 Chinese Mitten Crabs
 Damaged ecosystems more susceptible to invasion
 1998 bleaching event killed 80-90% of the coral reefs in the Seychelles,
leaving them more vulnerable to invasions (IUCN.org)
 3 out of 330 spp. were introduced
Hot spots
In areas subjected to the worst pollution, the most intensive fisheries and bottom
trawling, and major shipping routes
http://maps.grida.no/go/graphic/invasive-species-in-the-marin
e-environment-problem-regions
Rtrcwma.org
In 1999, it was estimated that the total cost of managing invasive species in the
United States was around $120 billion per year (Pimentel et al. 2004)
Characteristics of successful invaders
 Large home range
 Ecological generalists
 High invasion frequency
 High larvae dispersal
Marine Fish invaders
 Rare
 <30 of 550 fish introductions in US were marine
 Most introductions were intentional
 Improvement to ecosystem?
 Few negative effects actually documented
How did they get here?
 Ballast water
 Aquaculture
 Seafood trade
 Pet trade
Major pathways of marine invasive
species infestation
Maps.grida.no
Ballast Water
Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)
-Native to Eurasia
-First sighted in 1988 in Great Lakes
-Hudson River in 1991
-Now occur in densities as high as 700,000 per m2
Aquaculture
• Rearing aquatic animals or
cultivating aquatic plants for
food
•Animals can escape
•Asian Carp
•Atlantic salmon
Drgeorgpe.com
Seafood trade
 Intentional or Accidental
 Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis)
 northern snakehead fish (Channa argus)
Sportsmanhabitat.com
Pet trade
 Escape or release of pets
 Also feed, plants
 “Don’t free Nemo”
Impacts of invasives
 Foodweb interactions
 Competition
 Disease
 parasites
 Loss of biodiversity
What can be done?
 “bounty” for fish capture
 Volunteer surveys, Rapid Assessment surveys
 Utilize invasive as food source
 Biocontrol?
Education
 http://www.iiseagrant.org/NabInvader/
Example 1: 2 invasive crabs
 Carcinus maenas
 European shore crab
Rough map of the distribution of Carcinus maenas.
Blue areas are the native range; red areas are the
introduced or invasive range; and green areas are
the potential range of the species.
Example 2: Sea lamprey
Petromyzon marinus
 Life history:
 Anadramous
 Native to Atlantic coast
Example 2: Sea lamprey
Petromyzon marinus
 Introduction:
 Welland Canal
 1st spotted in Lake Eerie 1921
Example 2: Sea lamprey
Petromyzon marinus
 Spread
Dnr.wi.gov
Example 2: Sea lamprey
Petromyzon marinus
 Impacts:
 Affected sportfish
 Disrupted foodwebs
 One adult lamprey can
consume 40 lbs of fish in
its lifetime
Dnr.wi.gov
Example 2: Sea lamprey
Petromyzon marinus
 Response efforts
 Lampricide
 Physical barriers
 Sterile male release
Syracuse.com
Fws.gov
*90% reduction in most
areas where these methods are applied
Example 3: Lionfish
Pterois volitans
Background:
•Venomous
•Dorsal, anal, and pelvic spines
•Native to Indian and W. Pacific oceans
Example 3: Lionfish
Pterois volitans
Introduction:
•Biscayne Bay, FL
•Hurricane Andrew, 1992
Evidence for the aquarium trade as the
vector for the introduction of lionfish
● Lionfish are popular in the North American aquarium
trade
● Lionfish were released from an aquarium in Florida
waters
● Other marine aquarium fish have been introduced in
Florida waters
● Color patterns of lionfish off the SE US are similar to
those from the Philippines where many are collected for
the aquarium trade
● No successful introductions of scorpaenids are known
to have occurred via ballast water
Coastalscience.noaa.gov
Oceanservice.noaa.gov
● In more than a century, no Pacific marine fish are
known to have been introduced into the western Atlantic
Ocean via ballast water
Example 3: Lionfish
Pterois volitans
 Spread:
 Long distance larvae dispersal
 Females release large egg masses,
fertilized externally, gradually break apart
to release larvae
 Some lionfish reproducing
every few days
 No natural enemies
Example 3: Lionfish
Pterois volitans
Pacific Cornetfish, Fistularia corneta
(Mexicofish.com)
 Impacts
 Affecting food web, no natural predators in Atlantic Ocean
Example 3: Lionfish
Pterois volitans
 Response efforts
 Bounty
 Research
 Outreach, Education