Abstract
Invasive alien species (IAS) are considered an important threat to global biodiversity due to major ecological impacts. In 2014, the European Union (EU) introduced a regulation (EU) No 1143/2014 on the prevention and management of the introduction and spread of IAS. The first risk prioritized list of IAS of EU concern was adopted on the 3rd of August 2016. EU member states are required within 18 months to carry out a comprehensive analysis and prioritisation of the pathways of unintentional introduction and spread of these IAS in their territory. Horizon-scanning is a method of IAS prioritisation through the systematic analysis of potential future IAS and identification of new opportunities for IAS management. However, horizon-scanning has mostly been applied on a national basis only, leading to a fragmented approach within the EU and ignoring the potential for IAS to cross international borders. We present a novel framework for horizon-scanning applicable at a continental scale. Our method maximises the use of available data from climatically matched countries by applying a harmonisation and aggregation method, and elucidates the relationship between pathways, impact types and species groups for risk prioritised IAS. Application of the method produced a list of potential IAS for the Netherlands revealing that the international trade in plants and animals is the most important pathway for the introduction of IAS. The horizon-scanning provided a starting point for the design of preventative, early identification and rapid action measures for the effective management of potential IAS.
Highlights
The sheltered environment and diverse substrates that harbours provide (Arenas et al 2006), together with the confluence of multiple and often high frequency vectors (Bax et al 2003; Bulleri and Chapman 2010) make harbours foci of marine invasions (Forrest et al 2009; López-Legentil et al 2015)
A total of 29 alien species were detected across the 14 harbours (Table 1), of which only the amphipod Ericthonius difformis (Milne Edwards, 1830) was new to South African waters (Peters et al 2014)
Yachts have been highlighted as having the potential to transfer marine alien species in several regions across the world (Floerl et al 2005; Davidson et al 2010; Clarke Murray et al 2011; Brine et al 2013; Ros et al 2013; Zabin et al 2014)
Summary
The sheltered environment and diverse substrates that harbours provide (Arenas et al 2006), together with the confluence of multiple and often high frequency vectors (Bax et al 2003; Bulleri and Chapman 2010) make harbours foci of marine invasions (Forrest et al 2009; López-Legentil et al 2015). While the last decade has seen an increasing number of harbour surveys for alien species, few have attempted to systematically examine the underlying factors that may influence their presence (Arenas et al 2006; Campbell et al 2007) This gap in knowledge hinders the development of welldirected policy and management actions aiming to address invasions (Spear et al 2013). Hull fouling has been placed on the International Maritime Organization (IMO) agenda and several countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Seychelles, the United Kingdom and the USA have national initiatives focused on biofouling (Global Invasive Species Programme 2008) These guidelines were adopted in July 2011 and relate to anti-fouling system installation and maintenance, in-water inspections, cleaning and maintenance, as well as training and education regarding fouling and ways to manage it (Marine Environment Protection Committee 2011). Despite these advances in some regions, active monitoring and management practices are largely lacking at a global level and an improved science base is needed to guide monitoring and management efforts (Vicente et al 2013)
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