A Systematic Analysis of the Mediterranean Sea (IHO Sea Area) in the WRiMS Database

Abstract

The invasion of non-native species (NNS) is one of the greatest threats to biodiversity loss and represents a major problem in the Mediterranean Sea. Although many recent EU policies and directives address this problem and numerous scientific papers have been published, the available data remains scattered and incomplete. In 2021, the World Register of Introduced Marine Species (WRiMS), a newly established database, was launched but has not yet undergone systematic analysis. This study performed a thorough examination of the NNS documented in the WRiMS database within the Mediterranean Sea (International Hydrographic Organization Sea Area). Our findings revealed that the majority of species in the WRiMS database for the Mediterranean are classified as “unspecified” or “uncertain”, with only 79 species labeled as “invasive” and 13 as “of concern”. The number of recorded animal species exceeds that of plants, and most species belong to the phyla Chordata and Mollusca. Callinectes sapidus and Fistularia commersonii were the most frequently recorded species in the WRiMS for the Mediterranean. Although there exists some data on the impact of NNS and the vectors of their introduction, the information remains incomplete and requires further scientific research. The synthesized and summarized data in the supplement can be valuable input for a range of management decisions and for guiding further scientific research concerning NNS invasions in the Mediterranean Sea.