First occurrence of the Ponto-Caspian amphipod Echinogammarus trichiatus (Martynov, 1932) (Crustacea: Gammaridae) in Belgium

Pieter Boets,Peter Goethals,David Tempelman,Dirk Platvoet,Koen Lock,Ton Van Haaren

doi:10.3391/bir.2012.1.2.06

Abstract

The Ponto-Caspian amphipod species Echinogammarus trichiatus (Martynov, 1932) was found in Belgium for the first time in June 2009 at two different locations in an artificial lake bordered by two large canals. Adults as well as juveniles were found in small numbers and occurred together with several other Ponto-Caspian species such as Dikerogammarus villosus (Sowinsky, 1894) and Dreissena polymorpha (Pallas, 1771). An identification key to the genus Echinogammarus of inland waters in Western Europe is provided. This first record of yet another new amphipod invader in Belgium demonstrates the continuous introduction of alien species into West European waters.

Highlights

The opening of the Rhine-Main-Danube canal, eased the colonization of species endemic to the Ponto-Caspian region into Eastern and Western Europe (Bij de Vaate et al 2002; Messiaen et al 2010)
Because the samples of the VMM were only identified to the level needed to calculate the Multimetric Macroinvertebrate Index for Flanders (Gabriels et al 2010), E. trichiatus remained unnoticed until September 2011
First occurrence of Echinogammarus trichiatus in Belgium. Both sampling locations, where E. trichiatus was found, are situated in an artificial lake, which resulted from water intrusion into an old sand pit, where excavation took place in previous decades (Figure 2)

Summary

Introduction

The opening of the Rhine-Main-Danube canal, eased the colonization of species endemic to the Ponto-Caspian region into Eastern and Western Europe (Bij de Vaate et al 2002; Messiaen et al 2010). Crustaceans and mollusks are successful due to their intrinsic characteristics, such as a short generation time, rapid growth with early sexual maturity, high fecundity and their euryhaline and omnivorous characteristics (Devin and Beisel 2007; Grabowski et al 2007; Boets et al 2011a, b). We report on the first observation of another PontoCaspian amphipod species, Echinogammarus trichiatus (Martynov, 1932), previously known as Chaetogammarus tenellus major Cărăuşu, 1943

Methods

Results

Conclusion