Introduced species in European coastal waters

European Commission Directorate-General For The Information Society And Media Directorate-General For Research And Innovation

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Ecosystems research report 8Report on an international workshop, Monaco, 2-3 March 1993
Environment policy and protection of the environment
Environmental research

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• Publié par: EUROPEAN-COMMISSION-DIRECTORATE-GENERAL-FOR-THE-INFORMATION-SOCIETY-AND-MEDIA-DI
• Nombre de lectures: 15
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 3 Mo

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ISSN 1018-5593
ECOSYSTEMS RESEARCH REPORT 8
Introduced Species
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EUROPEAN COMMISSION
EUR 15309 EN s
European Commission
Directorate-General XII for Science,
Research and Development
INTRODUCED SPECIES
IN
EUROPEAN COASTAL WATERS
Report on an international Workshop organised jointly by the
ENVIRONMENT PROGRAMME
of
DGXÏÏ of the European Commission
and the
Commission Internationale pour l'Exploration Scientifique
de la Mer Méditerranée (CIESM) a <¿j>t* J( l/\ Qu *î
PARL EUROP. Biblioth.
(Monaco, 2-3 March 19Ô9Í
N.C.&ΪΟΪΙόβ
CI.
Edited by
CF. Boudouresque, F. Briand and C. Nolan
ENVIRONMENT
Commission
Internationale pour
Γ Exploration
Scientifique de la Mer
Méditerranée Published by the
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General XIII
Telecommunications, Information Market and Exploitation of Research
L-2920 Luxembourg
Introduced species in European Coastal Waters
Edited by: CF. Boudouresque,
Faculté des Sciences de Luminy
Lab. de Biologie Marine et d'Ecologie du Benthos
Route Léon Lachamps, 70/case 901
F - 13288 Marseille Cedex 9
F. Briand,
Commission Internationale pour l'Exploration Scientifique de la Méditerranée
16, bd de Suisse
MC - 98000 Monte-Carlo
C. Nolan
Commission Européenne
DG XII - Science, Recherche et Développement
Β - 1049 Bruxelles
This is Report 8 in the Ecosystems Research Report Series of the Environmental Research Programme
of the Commission of the European Communities, Directorate-General for Science, Research and
Development.
For more information concerning this series, please contact:
C. NOLAN
CEC- DGXII/D-1
200, rue de la Loi
Β - 1049 Brussels
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form
or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without indicating the
abovementioned references.
LEGAL NOTICE
Neither the Commission of the European Communities nor any person acting
on behalf of the n is responsible for the use which might be made of
the following information
Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication
Luxembourg: Office for Official Publication of the European Communities, 1994
ISBN 92-826-6727-8
© ECSC-EC-EAEC, Brussels· Luxembourg, 1994
Printed in Belgium — IH —
Report on EEC/DG ΧΠ - CIESM Workshop on
Introduced Species in European Coastal Waters (Monaco, 2-3 March 1993)
C.F. Boudouresque, F. Briand and C. Nolan (eds.)
Summary
This report, with scientific articles in English and French, is based on an expert workshop
jointly organized by EEC/DGXII and CIESM. It illustrates a spectacular increase of
accidental species introductions in European coastal waters in the last 20 years. Some of
these are clearly linked with recent developments in aquaculture, marine transport (ballast
waters), or aquariology, others with anthropic and / or climatic changes, others yet with the
deepening of the Suez Canal. Numerous examples taken from various compartments of the
biota - algae and invertebrates in particular - are provided : they illustrate the fragmentary
nature of existing knowledge on this issue, as well as its complex and broad implications in
the technical, economic and legal domains.
Compared to the large body of knowledge gathered on terrestrial species introductions, data
on the dynamics of coastal species introductions remain far too scarce for the development
of general predictive models. The participants called for the launch of an European research
programme in order to provide reliable tools for the proper management and monitoring of
this problem. Beyond the constitution of an European data bank on introduced species and
receptive habitats, identified research priorities include the dynamics of these introductions,
their history, their mode of introduction and dispersal, their biological and socio-economic
impact (both negative and positive) on local ecosystems. Specific attention is drawn to the
need (a) for systematic investigations and monitoring of ballast waters, suspected to play a
major role in transporting marine and brackish species across wide distances, (b) for the
genetic characterisation of aquaculture yş wild populations, and (c) for investigating possible
relations between pollution level and vulnerability to biological invasions.
The report stresses that existing legal international instruments, such as the EC Habitats
Directive, the Helsinki Convention or the Barcelona Convention, remain largely silent on this
issue, and must be rapidly strengthened. In particular, the participants concluded that further
legislation, based on the "precautionary principle", should be drafted to control and limit the
transport of live species, which may be introduced deliberately or not into the frontiers of the
European Community. — IV —
Publications to date in the Ecosystems Research Reports Series include
1. Decomposition and accumulation of organic matter in terrestrial ecosystems : research
priorities and approaches (N. Van Breeman, Ed.)
2. The N1TREX Project : Nitrogen saturation experiments (N.B. Dise &
R.F. Wright, Eds.)
3. The CORE Project : Regulation of organic matter and nutrient turnover in the soil
comportment of European Forests (M. Raubuch, Ed.)
4. Experimental manipulations of biota and biogeochemical cycling in ecosystems
approach and methodologies - Findings (L. Rasmussen, T. Brydges &
P. Mathy, Eds.)
5. Effects of forest fires on Mediterranean Ecosystems (L. Trabaud, R. Prodam &
P. Mathy, Eds.)
6. Design and Execution of experiments on COj enrichment (E.D. Schulze and
H.A. Mooney, Eds.)
7. The EXMAN Project : Experimental manipulation of forest ecosystems in Europe
(C. Beier & L. Rasmussen, Eds.)
8. Introduced species in European coastal waters (CF. Boudouresque, F. Briand &
C. Nolan, Eds.)
9. ALPE-1 : Acidification of Mountain Lakes. Paleolimnology and ecology (Wathne,
B.M. & Patrick, S.T., Eds.) — ν—
CONTENTS
Summary iii
Introducedspecies in European coastal waters 1
Canice Nolan
SpeciesIntroductions in coastalwatersofEurope : A call for action4
Frédéric Briand
Les espèces introduites dans les eaux côtières d'Europe et de Méditerranée :8
Etat de la question et conséquences
Charles F. Boudouresque
The introduction of non-indigenous marine species to Europe : 25
Planktonic species
Gerald T. Boaich
Introduction of marine benthic algae into Atlantic Europeanwaters28
William F. Farnham
Les macrophytes marins introduits en Méditerranée : biogéographie 37
Maria A. Ribera
Introduced invertebrates : examples of success and nuisanceinthe44
European Atlantic and in the Mediterranean
Helmut Zibrowius
Réflexions sur les problèmes d'introduction de mollusques 50
Henri Grizel
Caractéristiques génétiques et capacité d'invasionchezlesinvertébrés56
dans les eaux littorales et les lagunes méditerranéennes
Anna Occhipinti Ambrogi
Lessepsian migration - Biological invasion of the Mediterranean 57
Bella S. Galii
Non-indigenous species in the Baltic Sea 60
Erkki Leppükoski
Concerns and activities oftheICESWorkingGroup on introductions 67
and transfers of marine organisms
Inger Wallentinus
The introduction of exotic species and the law75
Cyrille De Klemm
Bibliography 82Introduced species in European coastal waters
Canice NOLAN
Commission of the European Communities
DG XII Science, Research and Development
Environmenth Programme
200, rue de la Loi - 1049 BRUSSELS (B)
Rates of introductions of non-native species to European coastal waters has been increasing
dramatically in recent years. It is estimated that only a small fraction of all introductions are
successful in establishing new populations and that only a small fraction of these successes
are harmful. Unfortunately the consequences can then be devastating. Introductions do give
rise to concern on a global level, witness :
a) the creation of a special working group in ICES to examine the problem, to formulate
codes of practice and to review their effectiveness;
b) the implementation of legislation in Australia to protect coastal waters against
introductions;
c) the introduction of legislation in the U.S. to protect against further introductions of
the shellfish Dreissena polymorpha and other species;
d) the activation of the EC Emergency Response Task Force by Italy, France and Spain
following the introduction of Caulerpa taxifolia into the Mediterranean;
e) the recent severe impact of the recently introduced ctenophore Mnemiopsis
leidyi on Black Sea ecosystems and fisheries.
In 1991, the European Com