An inventory of phytoplankton diversity in 12 Adriatic ports was performed with the port baseline survey. Particular emphasis was put on the detection of harmful aquatic organisms and pathogens ...(HAOP) because of their negative impact on ecosystem, human health, and the economy. Phytoplanktonic HAOP are identified as species, either native or non-indigenous (NIS), which can trigger harmful algal blooms (HAB). A list of 691 taxa was prepared, and among them 52 were classified as HAB and five as NIS. Records of toxigenic NIS (Pseudo-nitzschia multistriata, Ostreopsis species including O. cf. ovata) indicate that the intrusion of non-native invasive phytoplankton species has already occurred in some Adriatic ports. The seasonal occurrence and abundance of HAOP offers a solid baseline for a monitoring design in ports in order to prevent ballast water uptake and possible expansion of HAOP outside their native region.
•Port baseline survey of phytoplankton was carried out in 12 Adriatic ports.•691 taxa were identified and typical seasonal community patterns were outlined.•Pseudo-nitzschia, Alexandrium, and Dinophysis were the most frequent and abundant HAB.•P. multistriata and Ostreopsis cf. ovata are NIS of the greatest harmful potential.•The phytoplankton list provides grounds for monitoring HAOP in Adriatic ports.
The invasive benthic foraminifera
Trochammina hadai
has been found for the first time in Europe along the coast of Normandy. Its native range of distribution is in Asia (Japan and Korea), and it has ...also been introduced along the coasts of western North America, Brazil and Australia. Morphological and molecular assessments confirm that specimens found in Le Havre and Caen-Ouistreham harbors belong to the Asiatic type. Like in Asia,
T. hadai
was found in transitional waters with muddy sediments. It exhibited high relative abundances (up to about 40%) confirming that
T. hadai
is a highly competitive species. In the present study, it was nearly absent from natural transitional waters and very abundant in heavily modified habitats like harbors, suggesting that ballast waters may likely be the vector of introduction. It was not recorded farther north along the coast of the Hauts-de-France. It is further hypothesized that the finding of a few specimens outside the harbor may facilitate the expansion of
T. hadai
in the English Channel by means of propagules dispersion.
The ability of microalgae to preserve viable in coastal sediments as resting forms provides a reservoir of biodiversity and a useful tool to determine species spreadings. This study represents the ...first port baseline survey on dinoflagellate cysts, investigated in nine Adriatic ports during a cross border project. 40 dinoflagellate taxa were detected. The assemblages resulted in all ports dominated by Lingulodinium polyedra and Alexandrium minutum/affine/tamutum group. General separation to the western and eastern side of the Adriatic regarding cysts assemblage composition, partially abundance, was observed. Six taxa were detected as non-indigenous species for the Adriatic. Two taxa are included in the list of harmful aquatic organisms, indicating the potential threat of ballast waters in the Adriatic. Potential spreading of taxa by general circulation and ballast waters, intra- and extra-Adriatic was investigated. The entering in to force of the ballast waters management regulations should enhance prospects to minimize future harmful impacts.
•Cysts seasonality in ports limited to quantitative aspect, qualitatively constant•Heterotrophic cysts dominate western, autotrophic and mixotrophic eastern Adriatic.•Six NIS observed in six ports, including Alexandrium affine and A. insuetum•Eight taxa of variable toxicity were observed.•Three taxa potentially spread by general circulation system over the Adriatic.
A specimen of Synagrops japonicus was collected in the north-western Mediterranean during an exploratory cruise using bottom trawl nets, aimed at the evaluation of possible consequences of lost at ...sea drums containing toxic materials. The discovery of this specimen follows the first record that occurred in the same area 28 years previously, fished by a bottom trawler in the waters of Portofino (Genoa, Italy) in 1987. The morphometric and meristic details of the new specimen are provided. The presence of this individual in the north-western portion of the Mediterranean is likely related toan accidental transport of larvae via ballast water by ships coming from outside the Mediterranean basin.
Uzorak Synagrops japonicus sakupljen je u sjeverozapadnom Mediteranu tijekom istraživačkog krstarenja pridnenim povlačnim mrežama, s ciljem procjene mogućih posljedica izgubljenih u moru bubnjeva koje sadrže otrovne materijale. Otkriće ovog primjerka slijedi prvi zapis koji se dogodio na istom području prije 28 godina, a primjerak je bio ulovljen pridnenom koćaricom u vodama Portofina (Genova, Italija) 1987. godine.Navedeni su morfometrijski i meristički detalji novog uzorka. Prisutnost ove jedinke u sjeverozapadnom dijelu Sredozemnog mora je vjerojatno povezana sa slučajnim transportom ličinki balastnom vodom u brodovima koji dolaze izvan mediteranskog bazena.
Ballast water in international navigation is deemed to play a key role in the unintentional movement of non-indigenous aquatic species across their geographical borderlines. In this context, the Gulf ...of Gabès is regarded as being exposed to species invasion due to its extensive human impact. The investigations carried out during the years 2009-2010 in the four port areas concerned 19 commercial ships. This study focused on the specific composition, status, abundance and viability of plankton in ballast water. For all ships, the qualitative analysis of samples was mainly marked by low diversity. The major groups were diatoms and Dinophyceae to a lower extent. The abundance of phytoplankton varied between 0 and 27.6 103 ind.dm–3. Most of the species found in ballast water were reported in different regions and were assumed to be cosmopolitan. The cell viability assessed by flow cytometry, revealed a viability rate ≤ 1 % for 85 % ships. Microfauna in the ballast water was very weakly represented and had a cosmopolitan distribution. No introduced species was detected. The quantity of sediment discharged in the Gulf of Gabès via ballast water during this period was described and estimated.
Relevance. In September, 2017 the International Convention on Control of Ships’ Ballast Waters and sediments, in which the Russian Federation takes part, came into effect.Aim of article is to cover ...the results of implementation of the Convention in Russia, regarding selection and analysis of ballast waters tests for compliance with the international standard.Material and methods. The materials for work were data on ship arrivals at the international seaports of the Russian Federation, provided by sanitary and quarantine departments of the Russian ports, and monitoring researches of ballast waters in seaports of some regions of the Russian Federation. Analytical, bacteriological, molecular methods were applied.Results. The studies of ballast waters in the Leningrad and Kaliningrad regions have been conducted for the first time in 2018, and in the Rostov region the study lasts since 2010. The laboratory researches of ships’ ballast showed that E. coli, Enterococcus spp. were in norm, V. cholerae O1 and O139 in ballast were absent. 12 of 21 ballast water tests investigated by specialists of the Rostov region laboratories contained V. cholerae non-O1/non-O139, ballast was taken on the ships which arrived from Romania and Turkey.Сonclusion. The results of the molecular and genetic researches suggest that there is a probability of V. сholeraе introduction brougth with ship ballast. Management decisions are demanded to ensure biological safety of shipping and to decrease intestinal infections incidence in residents of the seaside cities.
The round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) was first noticed in the Gulf of Gdansk in 1990. This Ponto-Caspian fish was most likely introduced to the Baltic environment from ships' ballast water. During ...the first years of invasion, slow population growth was observed in the initially colonized regions. From 1994, round goby gradually spread in all shallow water zones of the Gulf of Gdansk. The area occupied by the population and the number of fish grew rapidly. By the end of the nineties, round goby became a dominant fish in shallow waters of the western part of the Gulf of Gdansk, where the fish used all solid substrates on the bottom, including concrete piers, big stones or even dumped waste for spawning and refuge. The presence of round goby in the Vistula Lagoon and shallow waters near Rugia (Western Baltic) was noticed for the first time in 1999. The present state, size and condition of the round goby population in the Gulf of Gdansk led us to predict a continual spread of this species into new regions of the Baltic. In addition, the population of round goby is so large that the species has started playing a part in commercial fishing in the Gulf of Gdansk.PUBLICATION ABSTRACT
The presence of the demersal Asian copepod Pseudodiaptomus marinus is reported for the first time in the southern bight of the North Sea, in both Calais harbour and the coastal waters off Gravelines, ...France. This is the first record of P. marinus in the Atlantic Ocean sector and the North Sea area. The species was collected in January and October 2010, and in January, February and April 2011. The very low number of collected individuals (0.2 to 4.0 ind.m-3) and the capture of only two ovigerous females and of a few numbers of copepodid CV stages suggest that the species survives and actually reproduces in both sites but does not manage to develop an abundant population. The presence of P. marinus in Calais harbour and coastal waters of the southern North Sea supports recent observations of other Asian species in the same area and suggests a passive transport via ship's ballast waters.
Bio-contamination of water through biofouling, which involves the natural colonization of submerged surfaces by waterborne organisms, is a global socio-economic concern, allied to premature materials ...bio-corrosion and high human health risks. Most effective strategies release toxic and persistent disinfectant compounds into the aquatic medium, causing environmental problems and leading to more stringent legislation regarding their use. To minimize these side effects, a newly non-biocide-release coating strategy suitable for several polymeric matrices, namely polydimethylsiloxane and polyurethane (PU)-based coatings, was used to generate antimicrobial ceramic filters for water bio-decontamination. The best results, in terms of antimicrobial activity and biocide release, showed an expressed delay and a decrease of up to 66% in the population of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria on ceramic filters coated with polyurethane (PU)-based coatings containing grafted Econea biocide, and no evidence of biocide release after being submerged for 45 days in water. Biocidal PU-based surfaces were also less prone to Enterococcus faecalis biofilm formation under flow conditions with an average reduction of 60% after 48 h compared to a pristine PU-based surface. Biocidal coated filters show to be a potential eco-friendly alternative for minimizing the environmental risks associated with biofouling formation in water-based industrial systems.
During the monitoring investigations in the Don River estuary, an alien polychaete species of the family Sabellidae was recorded. Polychaete specimens were collected two times within a month, in the ...later sample one specimen had eggs in anterior abdominal chaetigers. The description of present specimens is provided. All the specimens match the diagnosis of the genus Aracia Nogueira, Fitzhugh et Rossi, 2010. However, there is an uncertainty at the species level: both A. riwo and A. heterobranchiata characters are present, though the latter seems to be more likely. Probable way of penetration into the Don River estuary is ballast water tanks, for many tankers use to spill their ballast water in this area.
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