Ballast-mediated animal introductions in the Laurentian Great Lakes: retrospective and prospective analyses

Since completion of the St. Lawrence Seaway in 1959, at least 43 nonindigenous species (NIS) of animals and protists have established in the Laurentian Great Lakes, of which ~67% were attributed to discharge of ballast water from commercial ships. Twenty-three NIS were first discovered in four "hotspot" areas with a high representation of NIS, most notably the Lake Huron Lake Erie corridor. Despite implementation of the voluntary (1989, Canada) and mandatory (1993, U.S.A.) ballast water exchange (BWE) regulations, NIS were discovered at a higher rate during the 1990s than in the preceding three decades. Here we integrate knowledge of species' invasion histories, shipping traffic patterns, and physicochemical factors that constrain species' survivorship during ballast-mediated transfer to assess the risk of future introductions to the Great Lakes. Our risk-assessment model identified 26 high-risk species that are likely to survive intercontinental transfer in ballast tanks. Of these, 10 species have already invaded the Great Lakes. An additional 37 lower-risk species, of which six have already invaded, show some but not all attributes needed for successful introduction under current BWE management. Our model indicates that the Great Lakes remain vulnerable to ship-mediated NIS invasions.

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Ballast Wafer Exchange as a Means of Controlling Dispersal of Freshwater Organisms by Ships

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f93-232 ◽

1993 ◽

Vol 50 (10) ◽

pp. 2086-2093 ◽

Cited By ~ 69

Author(s):

A. Locke ◽

D. M. Reid ◽

H. C. van Leeuwen ◽

W.G. Sprules ◽

J. T. Carlton

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Laurentian Great Lakes ◽

Zooplankton Species ◽

Water Control ◽

Species Invasion ◽

Freshwater Organisms ◽

Ballast Tanks ◽

St Lawrence River

During May–December 1990 and March–May 1991, 546 foreign ocean-going vessels entered the Laurentian Great Lakes and upper St. Lawrence River, areas protected by the Great Lakes Ballast Water Control Guidelines. Between 88 and 94% of the vessels exchanged their ballast water with seawater as required by the guidelines. Living representatives of 11 invertebrate phyla were sampled from ballast tanks. Between 14 and 33% of ships that exchanged freshwater ballast in midocean carried living freshwater-tolerant zooplankton at the time of entry to the Seaway, although these included many taxa already found in the Great Lakes. Four freshwater-tolerant zooplankton species that were identified as living specimens in ballast water have apparently not been recorded from the Great Lakes. Voluntary ballast water controls reduced but did not eliminate the risk of species invasion, since some ships did not comply with the guidelines, and even ships that did exchange ballast water could introduce viable freshwater-tolerant organisms into the Great Lakes. About half of the ballast water carried into the Seaway by ocean-going vessels and lakers each year originates from the St. Lawrence River, portions of which are not yet protected by any ballast controls.

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Modeling ships' ballast water as invasion threats to the Great Lakes

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f02-090 ◽

2002 ◽

Vol 59 (7) ◽

pp. 1245-1256 ◽

Cited By ~ 67

Author(s):

Hugh J MacIsaac ◽

Thomas C Robbins ◽

Mark A Lewis

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Aquatic Ecosystems ◽

Propagule Pressure ◽

Current Knowledge ◽

Invasion Process ◽

Long Distance ◽

Invasion Models ◽

Terrestrial Habitats ◽

Shipping Traffic

The spread of nonindigenous species (NIS) in aquatic ecosystems provides an opportunity to develop new perspectives on the invasion process. In this paper we review existing invasion models, most of which were developed to describe invasions of terrestrial habitats, and propose an alternative that explores long-distance invasions mediated by discharge of contaminated ballast water by ships inbound to the Great Lakes. Based on current knowledge of shipping traffic to the Great Lakes, our model predicts that mid-ocean exchange of ballast water lowers propagule delivery by approximately three to four orders of magnitude relative to unexchanged ballast water. Propagule pressure of individual ships that enter the Great Lakes loaded with cargo and that declare "no ballast on board" (NOBOB) is typically one to two orders of magnitude higher than that of vessels that exchange ballast. Because NOBOB vessels dominate (~90%) inbound traffic into the Great Lakes, these vessels collectively appear to pose the greatest risk of new introductions, even though their individual risks are low.

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Diapausing zooplankton eggs remain viable despite exposure to open-ocean ballast water exchange: evidence from in situ exposure experiments

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f09-192 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 67 (2) ◽

pp. 417-426 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Derek K. Gray ◽

Hugh J. MacIsaac

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Cold Storage ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Water Exchange ◽

Egg Viability ◽

Ocean Water ◽

Diapausing Eggs ◽

Species Introductions ◽

Ballast Tanks

To reduce the transfer of nonindigenous species, regulations require transoceanic ships to exchange ballast with ocean water before discharging into the Great Lakes. Although ballast water exchange (BWE) is effective for live freshwater animals, laboratory experiments provide mixed results with regards to its impact on diapausing zooplankton eggs. We conducted an in situ test of the effectiveness of BWE for treating diapausing eggs in ballast sediments. Incubation chambers containing ballast sediment were placed in ballast tanks of cargo vessels transiting from North America to Europe. Each vessel had paired ballast tanks, one of which remained filled with Great Lakes water (control), while the second was exchanged with mid-ocean water. Laboratory viability tests were then conducted to compare viability of eggs recovered from sediments placed in both treatments, as well as identical sediments that remained at the laboratory in cold storage. No significant differences in egg viability were detected between treatments, but more species hatched from sediment that remained in cold storage. Results indicate that physical conditions in ballast tanks may affect egg viability, but saltwater exposure does not eliminate the risk of species introductions via diapausing eggs. Strategies that minimize sediment accumulation in ballast tanks can reduce the risk of species introductions via diapausing eggs.

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Rate of species introductions in the Great Lakes via ships' ballast water and sediments

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f07-029 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 64 (3) ◽

pp. 530-538 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

John M Drake ◽

David M Lodge

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Brachionus Plicatilis ◽

Marine Species ◽

Freshwater Species ◽

Species Introduction ◽

Seasonal Timing ◽

Species Introductions ◽

Ballast Tanks ◽

Taxonomic Groups

We report results from a study of species in ballast tanks of ships entering the Great Lakes between 2000 and 2002. We collected 1349 individuals from at least 93 unique taxonomic groups, of which approximately half were identified to species. We estimated that the zooplankton assemblage in ballast water destined for the Great Lakes comprised from 200 to 1000 unique taxa consisting of both freshwater and marine species. Between 14 and 39 of these taxa have not yet been recorded from the Great Lakes. Further, 13.9% of individual specimens identified to the species level were from species not previously collected from the Great Lakes. We collected seven nonindigenous freshwater species not currently found in the Great Lakes: Brachionus plicatilis, Cyclocypria kinkaidia, Maraenobiotus insignipes, Microcyclops rubellus, Microcyclops varicans, Neomysis awatchensis, and Paracyclops chiltoni. We found no evidence that ship age, seasonal timing, or age of ballast water affected the abundance of individuals or species in the ballast tanks. To our knowledge, these are the first extrapolations of data from ballast water collections to estimate the rate of species introduction to any ecosystem.

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Another exotic mollusc in the Laurentian Great Lakes: the New Zealand native Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Gray 1843) (Gastropoda, Hydrobiidae)

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f96-343 ◽

1997 ◽

Vol 54 (4) ◽

pp. 809-814 ◽

Cited By ~ 46

Author(s):

D T Zaranko ◽

D G Farara ◽

F G Thompson

Keyword(s):

New York ◽

New Zealand ◽

Great Lakes ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Resource Competition ◽

Aquatic Organisms ◽

Potamopyrgus Antipodarum ◽

Laurentian Great Lakes ◽

Eastern North America ◽

Species Invasions

In 1991, the hydrobiid snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Gray 1843), native to New Zealand, was found 1 km offshore Wilson, New York, in Lake Ontario. This is the first known occurrence of the snail in eastern North America. Densities of P. antipodarum have increased since its discovery, and the snail is expected to spread quickly throughout the Great Lakes area. The biofouling potential of P. antipodarum is probably low; however, its most serious threat may be resource competition with native molluscs. This species was probably introduced in ballast water from transoceanic vessels, thus increasing the list of nonindigenous aquatic organisms introduced into the Great Lakes since the 1800s to 140 different organisms. The risk of other species invasions into the Great Lakes is still possible, despite the now mandatory ballast water regulations.

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Comment on “Rate of species introductions in the Great Lakes via ships’ ballast water and sediments”

Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences ◽

10.1139/f08-018 ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 65 (3) ◽

pp. 549-553 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Janet W Reid ◽

Patrick L Hudson

Keyword(s):

Great Lakes ◽

Ballast Water ◽

Native Species ◽

Laurentian Great Lakes ◽

Great Lakes Region ◽

Species Introductions ◽

Neoergasilus Japonicus ◽

Brackish Water Species ◽

Current List ◽

Water Species

The four species of freshwater copepod crustaceans found in ballast water or sediments in ships and characterized as “nonindigenous” to the Laurentian Great Lakes region by Drake and Lodge (Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sci. 64: 530–538 (2007)) are all widespread, North American natives. Drake and Lodge’s use of these native species to estimate the size of the “source pool” of the richness of potential invasive species resulted in an overestimation of its size. We list the fresh- and brackish-water species of copepods found in or on ships in the Great Lakes and discuss taxonomic and other questions pertaining to some of them. We suggest that Skistodiaptomus pallidus, Cyclops strenuus, Salmincola lotae, Nitokra incerta, and Onychocamptus mohammed be removed from the current list of nonindigenous copepod and branchiuran species established in the Great Lakes system, leaving seven species: Eurytemora affinis, Megacyclops viridis, Neoergasilus japonicus, Heteropsyllus nunni, Nitokra hibernica, Schizopera borutzkyi, and Argulus japonicus.

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