Buying environmental problems: The invasive potential of imported freshwater turtles in Argentina

Abstract

1. In recent years, decision-makers in Argentina have allowed the legal import of thousands of specimens of freshwater turtles. Given their invasive potential, many of the imported species have become established and have spread to other countries.2. The three most commonly imported species recently have been Graptemys pseudogeographica, Trachemys scripta, and Pseudemys nelsoni, all of them native to North America.3. This study assessed the invasive potential of these species in Argentina based on (i) bioclimatic envelope models, (ii) distribution of water bodies, (iii) location of the most populated cities, (iv) comparisons between their alien and native climatic niches, and (v) the main ecological traits of those species.4. The results showed that these species are able to establish viable populations in Argentina, especially T. scripta and G. pseudogeographica. This is because the country offers a large amount of suitable climatic space for these species, in which there are large areas with rivers and other water bodies. The situation is especially problematic in freshwater ecosystems of the north east, as well as in the most populated portion of the country. 5. A range of regulatory policies are suggested, which could help to reduce biodiversity loss and economic impacts in the future.

Turtles of the World: Annotated Checklist and Atlas of Taxonomy, Synonymy, Distribution, and Conservation Status (8th Ed.)

“…Aside from overt and highly impactful conservation threats such as overexploitation and habitat destruction, the global turtle fauna is also increasingly facing another insidious threat: genetic pollution caused by human-facilitated hybridization and introgression from introduced and invasive species (Rhymer and Simberloff 1996;Simison et al 2013;Spencer et al 2014;García-Díaz et al 2015;Nori et al 2017). This is not entirely new, but the current extent is unprecedented.…”

Turtles in Malaysia: A Review of Conservation Status and a Call for Research

“…These turtles have been farmed and traded for hundreds of years. As a result, different species and local genetic lineages have been moved, leading to other taxa and lineages in captivity and the wild [ 147 , 148 ].…”

Coexistence of Native and Invasive Freshwater Turtles: The Llobregat Delta (NE Iberian Peninsula) as a Case Study

“…However, how does a native turtle species such as Mauremys leprosa respond to a highly invasive and competitive species such as Trachemys scripta elegans at larger spatial scales and in multiple niche dimensions in human-altered environments? Existing evidence suggests that niche overlap is likely to be important for answering this question [52][53][54][55]. The main goal of this study was to analyze the factors determining the coexistence of M. leprosa and T. s. elegans in a coastal wetland heavily modified by human activity (Llobregat Delta, Spain).…”