Invasion of Coastal Marine Communities in North America: Apparent Patterns, Processes, and Biases

Ruiz, Gregory M.; Fofonoff, Paul W.; Carlton, James T.; Wonham, Marjorie J.; Hines, Anson H.

doi:10.1146/annurev.ecolsys.31.1.481

Cited by 909 publications

(654 citation statements)

References 87 publications

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“…For example, the slipper limpet C. fornicata affects mussels to which it is attached negatively but Ruiz et al (2000) also protects them against predators and parasite infections (Thieltges et al, , 2009. Within oyster reefs, the native mussels are relegated to dwell in niches between the much larger oysters which results in decreased growth but increased survival due to refuges from crabs and other predators (Eschweiler and Christensen, 2011).…”

Section: How To Manage Alien Species In the Wadden Sea?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nonnative macrobenthos in the Wadden Sea ecosystem

Buschbaum

Lackschewitz

Reise

2012

Ocean & Coastal Management

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a b s t r a c tAn inventory in the Dutch-German-Danish Wadden Sea revealed a total of 66 nonnative (alien) taxa including 17 tentative cryptogenics in the brackish-marine macrobenthos until 2010, which is close to average compared with similar inventories from other coasts. Although the Wadden Sea is known for the largest sedimentary tidal flats in the world, most aliens encountered were fouling at harbor walls, pontoons in marinas, at hard structures for coastal defense but also in epibenthic mussel and oyster beds. Recent qualitative rapid assessments focusing on port localities have substantially improved knowledge on introduced species in the Wadden Sea. Nonnative species have pervaded algal and invertebrate communities, and the guild of suspension feeders became particularly strengthened by aliens which took advantage of a recent phase with relatively warm years. Most alien species were not directly introduced into the Wadden Sea but have spread secondarily from adjacent coasts with more active harbors or shellfish cultures. We suggest that aliens which have already established in the Wadden Sea ecosystem should be tolerated to avoid ongoing manipulations in eco-evolutionary developments in this protected nature area. Mitigation of the advancing tide of invasive aliens should focus on vector control (shipping and open aquacultures) as well as on early detection with attempts of eradication during the initial phase of invasions on a scale of the entire European Atlantic coast of which the Wadden Sea ecosystem is an integral part.

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Section: How To Manage Alien Species In the Wadden Sea?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Nonnative macrobenthos in the Wadden Sea ecosystem

Buschbaum

Lackschewitz

Reise

2012

Ocean & Coastal Management

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“…While these previous studies have reWned our understanding of trophic cascades, the ongoing movement of species beyond their natural ranges has increasingly brought together invasive and native species that historically interacted with diVerent predators and prey (Ruiz et al 2000;Sax and Gaines 2003). Because this historical exposure may inXuence the degree of match between predator-prey types (Strauss et al 2008;Vermeij 2001), invaders may interfere with or fail to recreate historically important native trophic cascades.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Invasive species cause large-scale loss of native California oyster habitat by disrupting trophic cascades

et al. 2009

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Although invasive species often resemble their native counterparts, diVerences in their foraging and antipredator strategies may disrupt native food webs. In a California estuary, we showed that regions dominated by native crabs and native whelks have low mortality of native oysters (the basal prey), while regions dominated by invasive crabs and invasive whelks have high oyster mortality and are consequently losing a biologically diverse habitat.Using Weld experiments, we demonstrated that the invasive whelk's distribution is causally related to a large-scale pattern of oyster mortality. To determine whether predatorprey interactions between crabs (top predators) and whelks (intermediate consumers) indirectly control the pattern of oyster mortality, we manipulated the presence and invasion status of the intermediate and top trophic levels in laboratory mesocosms. Our results show that native crabs indirectly maintain a portion of the estuary's oyster habitat by both consuming native whelks (density-mediated trophic cascade) and altering their foraging behavior (trait-mediated trophic cascade). In contrast, invasive whelks are naive to crab predators and fail to avoid them, thereby inhibiting trait-mediated cascades and their invasion into areas with native crabs. Similarly, when native crabs are replaced with invasive crabs, the naive foraging strategy and smaller size of invasive crabs prevents them from eYciently consuming adult whelks, thereby inhibiting strong density-mediated cascades. Thus, while trophic cascades allow native crabs, whelks, and oysters to locally co-exist, the replacement of native crabs and whelks by functionally similar invasive species results in severe depletion of native oysters. As 123 coastal systems become increasingly invaded, the mismatch of evolutionarily based strategies among predators and prey may lead to further losses of critical habitat that support marine biodiversity and ecosystem function.

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“…For marine systems, shipping is a dominant transfer mechanism (vector) responsible for species transfers (Ruiz et al, 2000) and operates to transfer diverse biotic communities associated with ballast water and hulls (including a diverse array of surfaces). An effective interruption or management of the vector phase for these transfer mechanisms, therefore, will work to prevent a suite of species incursions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%