The Influence of Marina Characteristics on Non-native Colonisation

Abstract

The marina properties, such as; salinity range, tidal fluctuations, depth, and ascidian presence in-fluence the distribution of invasive non-natives. Transport vectors, aquaculture and fishery practic-es also have an important role in the distribution of invasive non-native species during the bioinva-sion process. We focused on 10 invasive non-native species of marine invertebrates in the UK. This study explained the distribution and ecology of five invasive non-native species (Styela clava (As-cidia), Didemnum vexillum (Ascidia), Caprella mutica (Crustacea), Crepidula fornicata (Gastropo-da), Watersipora subtorquata (Bryozoa)) and the marina characteristics of five invasive non-native species colonization (Austrominius modestus (Arthropoda), Ciona intestinalis (Ascidia), Botrylloides violaceus (Ascidia), Tricellaria inopinata (Bryozoa), Bugula neritina (Bryozoa)) in Wales coasts. The study site deployed settlement tiles in the inner and the outer tile as two positions in each marina: An equal number of vertical and horizontal tiles was deployed at each site with half-sampled at two weeks (very early colonization) and at eight weeks (later colonization). The results showed that some variations in marina characteristics affected the distribution of invasive non-native species. Invasive non-native species abundance, diversity and multivariate structure of the assemblages were very high. The colonization of tiles varied between locations at the entrance and within the marina, but not in any way, and the effect of tile orientation was surprisingly low.