Politics & Government

Four New Non-Native Water Species Threaten SF Bay

Ballast water and hulls of ocean-going ships remain the primary mechanisms responsible for bringing non-native species to California in recent years.

The California Department of Fish and Game reports the discovery of four new non-native aquatic species that have taken up residence in San Francisco Bay.

The DFG 2011 Invasive Species Report, released late last week, includes the first records of the appearance in San Francisco Bay of four species previously found only in other parts of the coast. These organisms include:

• Caprella simia, a Caprellid, or "skeleton" shrimp, which was first discovered in California’s Long Beach Harbor in the year 2000. C. simia is a Japanese species, probably introduced by fouling or ballast water, and considered likely to spread north. It is now widespread in San Francisco Bay.

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• Nicolea sp. A Harris, an undescribed polychaete worm, first found in California in 2000 in San Diego Bay and Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor. Possible culprits include ballast water and fouling on ships or recreational boats.

• Grateloupia lanceolata, a red alga native to Japan and Korea, has been found for the first time in the Port of Oakland and in Richardson Bay. This species was previously found at Santa Catalina Island, Port Hueneme and Moss Landing. It has been working its way up the Calfornia coast.

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• The collection of Amphibalanus eburneus (ivory barnacle) from Richmond and San Francisco marinas confirmed new findings in San Francisco Bay.  Although one specimen had been collected from a ship’s hull around 1938, no other occurrences were documented in the Bay during the intervening time.  More recent California observations of this North Atlantic native had been limited to Colorado Lagoon (Long Beach) and Huntington Harbor.

Non-native aquatic species affect the structure and function of ecosystems through declines of native and commercial fisheries, parasite interactions with native species and humans, and physical habitat alteration.

Non-native species often compete with native species; approximately 42 percent of the species on the federal threatened or endangered species lists are at risk primarily because of competition from non-native species. Approximately 40 percent of the species forced to extinction in aquatic ecosystems are due to biological invaders.

DFG’s Marine Invasive Species Program conducts biological surveys to monitor California coastal and estuary waters to determine the level of invasion by non-native aquatic species. The report covers the period between July 2008 and June 2011.

Research shows that of the 290 non-native aquatic species (excluding fish and vascular plants) with established populations in western North America, 81 percent were first recorded in California. Ballast water and hulls of ocean-going ships remain the primary mechanisms responsible for bringing species to California in recent years.

You can find the full report at this website.


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