Understanding the Role of Shipping in Biological Invasions of Coastal Marine Ecosystems Greg Ruiz Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Edgewater Maryland USA
Common Terms for Non-Native Species Exotic Introduced Nonindigenous Alien Naturalized Adventive Translocation Immigrant Weed Neophyte Colonist Invader Newcomer Waif Import Casual / Transient
Invasions by European Green Crabs 1817 1980 s 1989 2003 1980 s 1900
Overview Patterns of invasion for coastal marine ecosystems: Focus on invertebrates/algae in the U.S. Current state of knowledge about shipping and species transfer in U.S. Latitudinal pattern of invasions (non-native species richness) for western North America Comparative research in Panama
Non-native Invertebrates & Algae Reported in Coastal Waters of Continental U.S. Protozoa Other Bryozoa Cnidaria Urochordata Insecta Annelida Mollusca Crustacea NEMESIS 2006 0 30 60 90 120 Number of Species
Non-native Invertebrates & Algae Reported in Coastal Waters of Continental U.S. Protozoa Other Bryozoa Cnidaria Urochordata Insecta Annelida Mollusca Crustacea NEMESIS 2006 0 30 60 90 120 Number of Species
Number of Species 0 50 100 150 200 Biocontrol Fisheries Vectors Ornamental Including Shipping Excluding Shipping Multiple Shipping Fofonoff et al. 2003
Rate of new Increasing coastal Discovery invasions Rate detected for each coast of North America Number of Invasions 80 60 40 20 Coastal Invasions of the United States 100 West Coast Gulf Coast East Coast 0 0 30 60 90 120 150 180 Time (years) since 1790 Ruiz et al 2000 (Ruiz et al. 2000)
Discovery Rate of Coastal Invasions by Vector Number of Invasions 100 80 60 40 20 Fisheries Shipping Ruiz et al 2000 0 0 30 60 90 120 150 180 Time (years) since 1790
Trade by Ships Global Scale Ships carry >90% world trade > 85,000 ships in world fleet > 5.4 billion tonnes cargo / year Underpins global economic development Modern society is shipping dependant Continuing to increase
Vector(s) for coastal species introduced to North America by shipping (n=171) Dry Ballast Cargo Ballast Water Fouling 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 Number of Species Fofonoff et al 2003
Current Magnitude & Behavior of Shipping to U.S.?
National Ballast Information Clearinghouse Mandated by U.S. Congress via the National Invasive Species Act of 1996 (P.L. 104-332) Cooperative effort of USCG and SERC USCG Regulatory Activities SERC Collection, analysis, interpretation of data on ballast water delivery and management practices of commercial ships
Spatial Distribution of Arrivals and BW Discharge Events in the U.S. (2004-2005) Reported Arrivals / Year Foreign: 56,095 (70.8%) Domestic: 57,081 (60.8%*) Total Reported BW Discharge Foreign: 73,720,448 MT Domestic: 183,802,033 MT Miller et al. 2008
Last Ports of Call and Ballast Water Source Locations for arrivals to US ports of places (2004-2005) Last Ports of Call Ballast Water Source Locations Miller et al. 2008
Average Concentrations of Organisms in Untreated BW Zooplankton Phtyoplankton Bacteria Viruses 1.00E+00 1.00E+02 1.00E+04 1.00E+06 1.00E+08 Concentration (# per liter) 1.00E+10
Mid-ocean Ballast Water Exchange (BWE) Empty/Refill 100% Flow-Through 300% Approach: Vector Management
Hull Fouling Important Historically
Hull Fouling Important Today: bigger ships travel farther, faster WSA = ~335M sq meters/yr from overseas vessels
Latitudinal Pattern of Invasion Literature Review of known NIS Dutch Harbor Kodiak Island AK Kachemak Bay Prince William Sound Sitka Ketchikan Puget Sound Coos Bay Humboldt Bay San Francisco Bay Long Beach San Diego NEMESIS 2006 0 30 60 90 120 150 180 Number of Species
Explanations (hypotheses) Biases in Data Differences in Susceptibility to Invasions Differences in Propagule Supply (Propagule Pressure)
Standardized Surveys: Sessile Invertebrate Community
Standardized Surveys 26 BAYS X 10 BLOCKS X 20 PLATES (n=5,200) Plate Retrieval On-Site Analysis Voucher Collection/ Preservation Synoptic Collection / Archive Taxonomic Identification / Verification Data Analysis
Latitudinal Pattern of Invasion: Sessile Invertebrates Non-Native Species Richness Ruiz et al., unpublished data 30 r 2 = 0.90 25 20 15 10 5 0 25 35 45 55 65 Latitude (Degrees N)
Explanations (hypotheses) Biases in Data Differences in Susceptibility to Invasions Differences in Propagule Supply (Propagule Pressure)
Panama Canal Transits (1914-2005) 16000 Number of Transits 14000 12000 10000 8000 6000 4000 2000 0 1910 1925 1940 1955 1970 1985 2000 Year Data from Autoridad del Canal de Panama
Shipping traffic in Panama vs. major US ports (2000-2004) Seattle New Orleans Chesapeake Bay New York Los Angeles / Long Beach Houston Panama 0 5000 10000 15000 Average Number of Arrivals / Year Ruiz et al, 2006
Non-native Barnacle Species by Region (Literature Survey) Alaska Washington Oregon California Mexico Panama 0 1 2 3 4 5 Number of Species
Funding: US Department of Defense National Sea Grant Program Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council Smithsonian Institution SENACYT US Coast Guard US Fish and Wildlife Service
Last Ports of Call and Ballast Water Source Locations for arrivals to US ports of places (2004-2005) Last Ports of Call Ballast Water Source Locations Miller et al. 2008
Efficacy of BWE: Change in Dye Concentration 125 100 ug/l 75 50 Control Flow-Through Empty/Refll 25 0 T0 T1 T2 Summary: BWE causes ~90% reduction in original coastal water & zooplankton concentrations (n>20 shipboard experiments)