Volume 4, Issue 4
published December 2009
Contents | |
Research articles |
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Aki Kato, Naohiro Morita, Tomoko Hiratsuka and Shoichiro Suda
Recent introduction of a freshwater red alga Chantransia macrospora (Batrachospermales, Rhodophyta) to Okinawa, Japan
(pp 565-574)
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The freshwater red algal form taxon, Chantransia macrospora Wood, was recently collected at an artificial reservoir pond
in Okinawa, Japan. This species is chiefly characterized by a bluish-green thallus and erect filaments irregularly branched with
cylindrical to tapered cells and monosporangia on lateral branchlets. Our culture study confirmed that C. macrospora from
Okinawa was the ‘chantransia’ sporophyte of Batrachospermum species. The rbcL sequence of C. macrospora from
Okinawa was identical to isolate FG15 of this species from French Guiana in South America. The sporophyte Chantransia macrospora
as well as the gametophyte B. macrospora Montagne are distributed in North and South America. However, there have been no
records of either C. macrospora or B. macrosporum in Japan or in eastern Asia. Therefore, C. macrospora specimens
originally from South America may have been introduced to Okinawa, Japan, through the vector such as ornamental macrophytes.
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Sarah E. Stewart-Clark, Ahmed Siah, Spencer J.Greenwood, Jeff Davidson and Franck C.J. Berthe
Development of 18S rDNA and COI gene primers for the identification of invasive tunicate species in water samples
(pp 575-580)
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Invasive tunicates are creating costly fouling problems to the mussel aquaculture industry in many regions including
Prince Edward Island, Canada. These invasive tunicates are also posing a threat to the ecosystem integrity of native species.
There are currently four invasive tunicate species present in waters surrounding Prince Edward Island including: Ciona intestinalis,
Styela clava, Botryllus schlosseri, and Botrylloides violaceus. Current monitoring practices for the presence
of these species in PEI are conducted by costly and time consuming recruitment plates or via microscopy surveys for egg and larval
stages using dissecting microscopes. However, these methods are inadequate for early detection. Recruitment plates only allow for
the detection of tunicates once they have already established, and microscopic methods can be inaccurate since it is difficult
to distinguish between eggs and larvae of different species of tunicate. In this study, we propose polymerase chain reaction (PCR)
based detection as a means to overcome the limitations of current monitoring practices in water samples. For this purpose,
oligonucleotide primers were generated to enable the rapid analysis of samples for the presence of invasive tunicates by PCR.
Primers were designed from 18S rDNA and COI gene sequences specific to each species and were evaluated for efficacy, specificity,
and sensitivity in detecting target tunicate species. Through efficient detection methods and careful monitoring it is hoped that
further invasions of these tunicate species throughout Prince Edward Island waters can be prevented or managed in their early stage.
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Kate Griffith, Stephen Mowat, Rohan H.F. Holt, Kirsten Ramsay, John D.D. Bishop, Gretchen Lambert and Stuart R. Jenkins
First records in Great Britain of the invasive colonial ascidian Didemnum vexillum Kott, 2002
(pp 581-590)
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The colonial ascidian Didemnum vexillum was observed overgrowing fouling organisms present
on structures within Holyhead Marina in North Wales in September 2008. Despite the examination
of 9 other marinas in Wales during December 2008 and February 2009 no further populations were found.
During December 2008 the extent of D. vexillum within Holyhead Marina and the surrounding
harbour area was examined by diving. D. vexillum formed dispersed colonies throughout
the marina, with <1% to 10% cover, but was not observed at any location within Holyhead harbour
outside of the marina. Levels of infestation appeared to be low indicating a recent possible arrival.
D. vexillum was found on the hulls of two vessels berthed within Holyhead marina but these
vessels were long-term residents and not believed to be the source of infection. However, it is
expected that hull fouling on recreational boats may become important vectors in the dispersal of
D. vexillum to other regions around Britain. Although the species has been known in northern
Europe since the 1990s, this is the first recorded established population of D. vexillum in
Great Britain. In September 2008 a single colony of D. vexillum was collected in a marina in
Plymouth and a colony, appearing to be D. vexillum, was photographed at the Darthaven Marina
in 2005. The species was confirmed at this site in July 2009 by the collection of a single colony.
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Julia D. Nunn and Dan Minchin
Further expansions of the Asian tunicate Styela clava Herdman 1882 in Ireland
(pp 591-596)
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The first records of Styela clava are reported from the northern coasts of Ireland from two sheltered inlets in 2008.
On the south coast, high densities were found associated with mussel longlines in a shallow bay and remained abundant in 2009.
There is a potential for expansion of the species that may impact upon aquaculture installations in Irish shallow waters.
The distribution of the species in Ireland is reviewed.
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Dragoş Micu and Victor Niţă
First record of the Asian prawn Palaemon macrodactylus Rathbun, 1902 (Caridea: Palaemonoidea: Palaemonidae) from the Black Sea
(pp 597-604)
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The first specimens of the Asian prawn Palaemon macrodactylus Rathbun, 1902, including ovigerous females,
were identified in estuarine water bodies along the Romanian coast during early September 2009, in large numbers
compared to the native prawns Palaemon elegans Rathke, 1837 and Palaemon adspersus Rathke, 1837.
Examination of archived samples backdated the first occurrence of P. macrodactylus in the Black Sea to 2002.
The supposed vector of introduction is via ballast water, from ships travelling from Rotterdam. Native to the seas
of Japan and Korea, P. macrodactylus was first introduced in California in the 1950s, Australia in the 1970s
and later to Britain, parts of continental Europe and Argentina. The Asian prawn already has well-established
populations in the Romanian Black Sea and, taking into consideration the invasion record and the ecology of this
species, it is very likely that it will successfully invade the whole of the Black and Azov Seas and the adjacent
estuaries, deltas and limans.
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Jean-Claude Dauvin
Asian Shore Crabs Hemigrapsus spp. (Crustacea: Brachyura: Grapsoidea)
continue their invasion around the Cotentin Peninsula, Normandy, France:
Status of the Hemigrapsus population in 2009
(pp 605-611)
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This paper reports on the state of the Asian shore crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus (de Haan, 1835) population
around the Cotentin Peninsula (Normandy, France) for 2009. As in 2008, the year of the first survey, the northern
and eastern Cotentin coasts remain the most densely colonised. On the western shore, H. sanguineus remains
rare, except in two sites not surveyed in 2008. In the east most colonised sites, Gatteville-Phare and La Hougue,
the populations for both years indicate a rapid increase of abundance: maximum density > 50 ind.m-2
in 2009 compared to 10 ind.m-2 in 2008. This observation probably demonstrates that the species' current
significant increase is comparable to that of an invasive species. A second species of Asian shore crab
Hemigrapsus takanoi Asakura & Watanabe, 2005 was only present on one eastern site off Saint-Vaast-La-Houge,
but remains isolated.
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Robert E. Schmidt, Robert A. Daniels, Erin L. Swift and Ira B. Shadis
Inferences on the biology of juvenile Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) from exuviae in a Hudson River tributary, New York, USA
(pp 613-617)
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Exuviae of Chinese mitten crab were collected in the Saw Kill, a small tributary to the fresh-tidal Hudson River, in summer
and early fall 2008. Most exuviae were found in July when water temperatures exceeded 21ºC and numbers declined with subsequent
decreasing water temperatures. Sizes ranged from 12 to 45 mm CW and all were considered to be in their second summer (1+).
Very small exuviae (≤ 15 mm CW) were present from early June through mid-August indicating recruitment to the Saw Kill all summer.
Live mitten crabs were difficult to collect and therefore data from exuviae were useful in observing the early stage of this invasion.
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Kai Korsu and Ari Huusko
Propagule pressure and initial dispersal as determinants of establishment success of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis Mitchill 1814)
(pp 619-626)
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Establishment success of invasive species depends largely on the size of the initial source population because small populations
are more likely to fail due to stochastic or inverse density-dependent Allee effects. However, there are difficulties involved in
using propagule pressure as an explanatory variable to account for establishment success because records concerning the size of
initial source populations are typically (i) non-existent, (ii) only rough estimates and/or (iii) based on indirect measurements.
The focus of this study was the establishment success of a deliberately introduced non-native salmonid, Salvelinus fontinalis
as a function of actual site-specific propagule pressure. Additionally, we investigated whether newly released fish located suitable
habitat patches, potentially facilitating the spread of the invader across Finnish stream systems. We found that the propagule
pressure leading to highly successful establishment amounted to approximately 8000 released individuals. Additionally we also
noted that one fourth of the newly introduced fish rapidly located suitable habitat patches (small tributaries) during initial
dispersal, thus potentially increasing establishment success and the spread of the invader. The results suggest that by considering
both propagule pressure and initial dispersal it will be possible to understand the latter stages of the invasion process, eventually
leading to an improved capability in predicting successful invaders and sites that will be invaded.
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Wolfgang Jansen, Nola Geard, Tom Mosindy, Gavin Olson and Michael Turner
Relative abundance and habitat association of three crayfish
(Orconectes virilis, O. rusticus, and O. immunis)
near an invasion front of O. rusticus, and long-term changes
in their distribution in Lake of the Woods, Canada
(pp 627-649)
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We documented the abundance and habitat association of the native virile crayfish
[ (Hagen, 1870)] and two invasive species, the rusty crayfish
[O. rusticus (Girard, 1852)] and the papershell crayfish [O. immunis (Hagen, 1870)]
in a 38 km2 area in the Lake of the Woods (LOW; Canada). From 20 June to 1 September in 2006,
traplines were set at 376 sites for approximately 24 hours. A total of 9833 crayfish were captured,
of which 68% were O. virilis, 23% were O. rusticus, and 9% were O. immunis.
The mean catch per unit effort (CPUE) was 4.4 crayfish per trap with a maximum of 29. At least one
invasion front of O. rusticus was detected, where its CPUE decreased sharply from a mean of 1.3
to 0.03. The mean CPUE of both O. virilis and O. immunis was significantly higher outside
than within the front. For the entire catch, CPUE values of all three species were negatively correlated.
Water depth (0.5-12 m) was significantly related to crayfish abundance, positively for O. virilis
and negatively for O. rusticus and O. immunis. The distribution and abundance of the two
invasive species on islands and adjacent mainland sites indicated that water depths near and deeper
than the thermocline limit the colonisation of islands by O. rusticus and, particularly,
O. immunis, but that islands surrounded by shallower water may serve as shortcuts in crayfish
expansion circumventing convoluted shorelines. Mean CPUE of all three crayfish species differed between
bottom substrates, being highest on mainly rocky substrates for O. virilis and O. rusticus,
and on organic and inorganic fines for O. immunis. Mean CPUE of O. virilis near macrophytes
was similar to that in areas free of aquatic plants; CPUE near macrophytes was significantly lower for
O. rusticus and significantly higher for O. immunis.
In conjunction with crayfish captures during lake-wide fish surveys between 1973 and 2006, we show that
by 2006 O. rusticus has spread into most parts of LOW since its first record from Long Bay on
the east side of the lake in 1963, expanding its distribution by an average of 2.1 km per year.
Our results further indicate that O. immunis is more widespread and more abundant in LOW than
previously assumed.
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Anett S. Trebitz, John R. Kelly, Joel C. Hoffman, Gregory S. Peterson and Corlis W. West
Exploiting habitat and gear patterns for efficient detection of rare and non-native benthos and fish in Great Lakes coastal ecosystems
(pp 651-667)
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Despite the continued arrival and impacts of non-native aquatic species in the Great Lakes, there is as yet no comprehensive
early-detection monitoring program for them. As a step towards implementing such a program, we evaluated strategies for
efficient non-native species monitoring based on the ability to detect a diverse set of benthos and fish species currently present
in a heavily invaded, spatially complex Great Lakes subsystem. Taxa accumulation analyses confirmed that reliable detection of
rare species requires substantial sampling effort but also that there is potential for exploiting patchiness in distributions to
increase efficiency. While non-native species monitoring warrants generally comprehensive spatial coverage, it may be possible
to identify areas where such taxa are broadly most prevalent (e.g., the lower reaches of our study system) as a way to focus
effort. On a finer scale, richness of non-native taxa may vary substantially among stations in close proximity – which in this
system was driven by habitat variability rather than distance from potential introduction points. Microhabitats that differ in
physical attributes are also likely to differ in species composition and richness. Randomization analyses indicated that some
monitoring effort should be directed towards all distinct habitats but that detection rates are maximized by biasing effort towards
those habitats or gear yielding the most total, non-native, or rare taxa. For benthic invertebrates, shallow structurally complex
(vegetated) habitats yielded the most taxa but shallow open and deep habitats also contributed unique taxa. For fish, fyke-net
stations (shallowest habitats) yielded the most taxa, but electrofishing (intermediate-depth) and trawling (deepest) also
contributed unique taxa. Our approach to identifying relevant sampling strata and exploiting difference among them to increase
the efficiency of early-detection monitoring is applicable to a broad variety of systems.
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Short communications |
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Peter Wirtz and João Canning-Clode
The invasive bryozoan Zoobotryon verticillatum has arrived at Madeira Island
(pp 669-670)
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The invasive bryozoan Zoobotryon verticillatum Delle Chiaje, 1822 is recorded from Madeira for the first time.
Apparently it has been growing on the floating pontoons of Quinta do Lorde harbor, at the southeastern coast of Madeira
Island, for some time already.
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Verónica L. Fuentes, Dacha Atienza, Josep-Maria Gili and Jennifer E. Purcell
First records of Mnemiopsis leidyi A. Agassiz 1865 off the NW Mediterranean coast of Spain
(pp 671-674)
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The comb jelly Mnemiopsis leidyi was first reported in July 2009 along the Spanish coast of the NW Mediterranean Sea
and occurred throughout the summer (last report 26 September 2009). Large numbers of the ctenophore were reported by many
participants of the “Medusa Project”. The high concentrations of M. leidyi along the Spanish coast, together with
its blooms earlier this year in Israel, suggests establishment in the Mediterranean Sea. This is of great concern because
of the well-known effects of M. leidyi on marine ecosystems and the consequences for commercial fisheries.
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Ferdinando Boero, Marco Putti, Egidio Trainito, Emanuele Prontera, Stefano Piraino and Tamara A. Shiganova
First records of Mnemiopsis leidyi (Ctenophora) from the Ligurian, Thyrrhenian
and Ionian Seas (Western Mediterranean) and first record of Phyllorhiza punctata (Cnidaria) from the Western Mediterranean
(pp 675-680)
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The gelatinous macroplankters Mnemiopsis leidyi and Phyllorhiza punctata are recorded
for the first time from the Italian coasts of the Western Mediterranean. In the framework of the CIESM
Jellywatch campaign in the summer of 2009, M. leidyi was recorded from the Ligurian, Tyrrhenian,
and Ionian Seas, including swarming episodes that, together with those reported from Spain in the same
period, suggest a great success of the species in the Western Mediterranean. A single specimen
of P. punctata has been recorded from Sardinia. These species do not sting or harm humans
and no impact on tourism is expected, but they might harm fisheries by predating on fish eggs and
larvae and their prey, zooplankton. The large distribution area of M. leidyi suggests
the species invaded the Western Mediterranean during the summer of 2009, but its establishment
is still uncertain, since the populations might not withstand winter conditions. The isolated record
of P. punctata just indicates that it can reach this part of the Mediterranean.
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Pedro Morais, Joaquim Teodósio, Joaquim Reis, Maria Alexandra Chicharo and Luis Chicharo
The Asian clam Corbicula fluminea (Müller, 1774) in the Guadiana River Basin (southwestern Iberian Peninsula): Setting the record straight
(pp 681-684)
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This paper aims to set the record straight regarding the first observations of Corbicula fluminea (Müller, 1775) in the Guadiana River Basin.
According to the available data, C. fluminea was first observed in 1988 and not in 2006 as suggested by Pérez-Bote and Fernandéz (2008).
The first observations of C. fluminea in the Guadiana estuary were reported in 2000. In 2003, C. fluminea was already well established
in the estuary and in many rivers and streams. C. fluminea is likely to expand its current biogeographic distribution in Portugal, since
suitable lentic habitats for colonization will be created by the implementation of the “National program of dams with high hydraulic potential”,
which should be concluded by 2016.
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Cristina Cappelletti, Simone Cianfanelli, Maria Elena Beltrami and Francesca Ciutti
Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia: Unionidae): a new non-indigenous species in Lake Garda (Italy)
(pp 685-688)
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The first record of Sinanodonta woodiana (Lea, 1834) (Bivalvia: Unionidae) in Lake Garda,
the largest Italian lake located in the Southern Alps is reported. Empty shells of this alien bivalve,
also known as the Chinese pond mussel, were observed in February 2009 along the southeastern shore.
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Alicja Konopacka, Michal Grabowski, Karolina Bącela-Spychalska and Tomasz Rewicz
Orchestia cavimana Heller, 1865 (Amphipoda: Talitridae) enters freshwater inland habitats in the Vistula River, Poland
(pp 689-691)
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Orchestia cavimana, a semiterrestrial amphipod of presumably Mediterranean origin
was found for the first time in a freshwater habitat in Poland in October 2009, in the main
Vistula channel at Świbno. Most probably the species reached this locality from the nearby
Baltic coast by natural spread up the river. Taking into account its high abundance at
the site and presence of immature individuals, the species has probably established a permanent
population in this new habitat in Poland.
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Péter Borza
First record of the Ponto-Caspian amphipod Echinogammarus trichiatus (Martynov, 1932)
(=Chaetogammarus trichiatus) (Crustacea: Amphipoda) for the Middle-Danube (Slovakia and Hungary)
(693-696)
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The Ponto-Caspian amphipod Echinogammarus trichiatus (=Chaetogammarus trichiatus)
was found for the first time in Slovakia (22 August 2007, near Bratislava) and in Hungary
(15 September 2009, near Rajka). This range expansion is probably a result of a recent downstream
spread of the Upper-Danubian populations. Our records indicate that the species can inhabit artificial
rip-raps as well as near-natural gravel banks, and co-occurs with its relatives already present.
Suitable habitats can be found all along the Middle-Danube, so further spread of the species is anticipated.
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Hans Bernd Stich, Andreas Hoppe and Gerhard Maier
Zooplankton composition in a gravel pit lake invaded by the Ponto-Caspian mysid Hemimysis anomala G.O. Sars 1907
(pp 697-700)
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During a zooplankton monitoring program in the Rhine catchment (Southern Germany) during the 2006 sampling year,
we recorded the mysid Hemimysis anomala in an oligotrophic gravel pit lake. The crustacean and rotifer abundance
in the lake was low; maximum density was 28 and 145 ind. L-1, respectively. Crustaceans were dominated by copepods,
which constituted 90-100% of the zooplankton community. Cladocerans were represented only by Diaphanosoma brachyurum.
Rotifers were dominated by Polyarthra spp. for most part of the year. We suggest that the reason for the lack of cladocerans
(except Diaphanosmoma) could be competition and/or predation by H. anomala. That D. brachyurum could persist
in the presence of Hemimysis may be a result of spatial segregation. Possibly, due to differences in thermal preferences,
H. anomala avoids the warm epilimnion of the lake in summer while Diaphanosoma may prefer it.
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Bella S. Galil, Mehmet Baki Yokes, Menachem Goren and Ariel Diamant
First record of the Indo-West Pacific mantis shrimp, Clorida albolitura Ahyong & Naiyanetr, 2000 (Stomatopoda, Squillidae) in Turkey
(pp 701-702)
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The Erythrean stomatopod Clorida albolitura is reported herein for the first time from the Bay of Iskenderun
on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. Additional records from locations off the southern coast of Israel attest to the presence
of a rapidly growing population of this alien species in the Mediterranean Sea.
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Ton van Haaren and Jan Soors
Sinelobus stanfordi (Richardson, 1901): A new crustacean invader in Europe
(pp 703-711)
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This short note reports on the first European records of Sinelobus stanfordi (Crustacea: Tanaidacea: Tanaidae).
The species has been recorded from five different water bodies in the Dutch coastal area and in the docks of the Belgian harbour of Antwerp.
S. stanfordi was until now not known to inhabit (North-) European coasts and estuaries. It is thus very likely that its origin is non-indigenous.
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Maria Antonietta Pancucci-Papadopoulou, Maria Corsini-Foka, Kostantinos Tsiamis and Stefanos Kalogirou
The occurrence of Carupa tenuipes Dana, 1851 (Crustacea: Brachyura: Portunidae) from Rhodos Island (SE Aegean Sea, Greece)
(pp 713-714)
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A specimen of Carupa tenuipes Dana, 1851 (Crustacea: Brachyura: Portunidae) from the eastern coastline of Rhodos Island
is reported from under stones of a rocky substrate with low vegetation coverage at 0.5 m. Carupa tenuipes is considered
to be a well established alien decapod species in the Eastern Mediterranean.
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Immacolata Faccia, Alexander Alyakrinsky and Carlo Nike Bianchi
The crab that came in from the cold: first record of Paralithodes camtschaticus (Tilesius, 1815) in the Mediterranean Sea
(pp 715-718)
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On August 2008, a single individual of the red king crab Paralithodes camtschaticus, a boreal species indigenous
to the North Pacific, was caught by a gill net in the Ionian Sea, Central Mediterranean. The crab weighed 4 kg and it is
estimated it was ten years old. Transport in ballast water seems the most likely way of introduction. If true, the implication
is that this cold-water species is capable of surviving and growing to adulthood in a warm-temperate sea.
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Juan Garcia-de-Lomas, Elías D. Dana, Javier López-Santiago, Rubén González, Guillermo Ceballos and Fernando Ortega
First record of the North American black bullhead Ameiurus melas (Rafinesque, 1820) in the Guadalquivir Estuary (Southern Spain)
(pp 719-723)
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The North American black bullhead Ameiurus melas has been recorded for the first time in the Guadalquivir Estuary.
The abundance of A. melas was monitored and quantified after first detection (February, 2007), with captures in two
consecutive surveys (from October to December for 2007 and 2008) using nylon fyke nets. Catch per unit effort (CPUE) showed
a rapid increase from 0.11 individuals per net in 2007 to 0.47 ind net-1 in 2008. Additionally, A. melas
specimens collected in the 2008 survey (n = 1563), were measured (LT) and weighed to study the population structure and
allometric growth relationship. The rapid increase in abundance of A. melas, together with the cohort analysis of
individuals collected in the 2008 survey, suggest that incipient reproduction of black bullhead is already occurring.
The invasion of A. melas constitutes a new threat to biodiversity in the Guadalquivir Estuary and connected natural
parks and reserves (e.g., Doñana National Park). It also presents potential economic damage to fisheries and aquaculture fish-farms.
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