Abstract
Biological invasions are an important threat to biodiversity especially in aquatic ecosystems, and their frequency is generally higher near urban areas. Potentially invasive non-indigenous molluscs were deliberately introduced into European waters for food (Corbicula fluminea) and biocontrol (Melanoides tuberculata), and unintentionally introduced by ballast water (Mytilopsis leucophaeata, Corbicula fluminea), stock contamination (Sinanodonta woodiana), accidental escapes from aquaculture (Sinanodonta woodiana), aquarium trade releases (Melanoides tuberculata) and even attached to aquatic birds (Corbicula fluminea). Three rivers from the Iberian Peninsula were monitored near the three most populated inland cities to evaluate the presence of these invasive molluscs through PCR amplification using taxon-specific primers from eDNA. New primers were designed within 16S rRNA and cytochrome oxidase subunit I genes, tested in silico from BLAST methodology and experimentally in vitro before application in the field. C. fluminea was found in Ebro River (near Zaragoza); M. leucophaeata in Guadalquivir River (near Sevilla). M. tuberculata and S. woodiana were found from enclosed areas (lake and reservoir respectively) upstream, respectively, Zaragoza and Madrid. The new tools are ready to be used in other regions where these species are also invasive.
Highlights
Biological invasions are one of the most important threats to biodiversity
An example is the rapid spread of Mytilopsis leucophaeata and the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha in the Baltic Sea [4]
The mollusc species analysed in this study (Corbicula fluminea, Melanoides tuberculata, Mytilopsis leucophaeata, Sinanodonta woodiana) are considered invasive in the Iberian Peninsula
Summary
Biological invasions are one of the most important threats to biodiversity. In aquatic ecosystems the number of invasive species has increased in the last decades, due to globalization and closely related to human activities [1, 2]. Human-mediated transport together with global warming could promote the rapid and uncontrolled dispersion of invasive freshwater species [3]. An example is the rapid spread of Mytilopsis leucophaeata (native to the Gulf of Mexico) and the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha (native to the Caspian Sea) in the Baltic Sea [4]. The ways of introduction of aquatic species are numerous.
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