Search

Score-based decision-support tools are increasingly used to identify potentially invasive non-native species as part of the risk screening (initial risk identification) component of non-native species risk analysis. Amongst these tools are the Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) and its derivatives, e.g. the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (ASISK), which have been extensively used on a large variety of terrestrial and aquatic plants and of aquatic animals worldwide. In this paper, a correction is made to the previous guidance on the use of two separate thresholds to risk-rank species, i.e. one for current climate conditions (basic risk assessment: BRA threshold) and one for future climate conditions (BRA + climate change assessment: BRA+CCA threshold). Re-evaluation of this practice reveals that, to avoid the incorrect risk-ranking of species, only the BRA threshold should be used in all future applications of WRAtype toolkits that include a separate set of climate-change questions - at present, this involves the AS-ISK and the newly released Terrestrial Animal Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (TAS-ISK). As a result of this revised guidance, all published studies containing AS-ISK applications to date are reviewed here, and where approrpiate corrected risk ranks are provided for species that were risk-ranked using a BRA+CCA threshold. Corrections are also made whenever applicable to published errors or incorrect risk ranks based on the BRA threshold in the AS-ISK applications reviewed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electronic decision-support tools are becoming an essential component of government strategies to tackle non-native species invasions. This study describes the development and application of a multilingual electronic decision-support tool for screening terrestrial animals under current and future climate conditions: the Terrestrial Animal Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (TAS-ISK). As an adaptation of the widely employed Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK), the TAS-ISK question template inherits from the original Weed Risk Assessment (WRA) and related WRA-type toolkits and complies with the 'minimum requirements' for use with the recent European Regulation on invasive alien species of concern. The TAS-ISK consists of 49 basic questions on the species' biogeographical/historical traits and its biological/ecological interactions, and of 6 additional questions to predict how climate change is likely to influence the risks of introduction, establishment, dispersal and impact of the screened species. Following a description of the main features of this decision-support tool as a turnkey software application and of its graphical user interface with support for 32 languages, sample screenings are provided in different risk assessment areas for one representative species of each of the main taxonomic groups of terrestrial animals supported by the toolkit: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, annelids, insects, molluscs, nematodes, and platyhelminths. The highest-scoring species were the red earthworm Lumbricus rubellus for the Aegean region of Turkey and the New Zealand flatworm Arthurdendyus triangulatus for Croatia. It is anticipated that adoption of this toolkit will mirror that of the worldwide employed AS-ISK, hence allowing to share information and inform decisions for the prevention of entry and/or dispersal of (high-risk) non-native terrestrial animal species - a crucial step to implement early-stage control and eradication measures as part of rapid-response strategies to counteract biological invasions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquatic invasions are one of the major threats for freshwater ecosystems. However, in developing countries, knowledge of biological invasions, essential for the implementation of appropriate legislation, is often limited if not entirely lacking. In this regard, the identification of potentially invasive nonnative species by risk screening, followed by a full risk assessment of the species ranked as higher risk, enables decision-makers to be informed about the extent of the threats posed to the recipient (risk assessment) area. In this study, 32 non-native extant and horizon fish species were screened for their risk of invasiveness under current and predicted climate conditions for the South Caucasus - a biodiversity and geopolitical hotspot that includes the countries of Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia. Overall, the number of very high-risk species increased from four (12.5%) under current climate conditions to 12 (37.5%) under predicted climate conditions. The highest-risk species under both conditions included the already established gibel carp Carassius gibelio and topmouth gudgeon Pseudorasbora parva, the locally translocated pikeperch Sander lucioperca and the horizon North African catfish Clarias gariepinus. Under predicted climate conditions, a very high risk of invasiveness was predicted also for the translocated threespined stickleback Gasterosteus aculeatus and Eurasian perch Perca fluviatilis, for the already established eastern mosquitofish Gambusia holbrooki, ruffe Gymnocephalus cernua, sharpbelly Hemiculter leucisculus and Nile tilapia Orechromis niloticus, and for the horizon pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus and largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. Future research on the non-native species in the South Caucasus should be conducted both country- and region-wide and should account not only for the high biodiversity, but also for the critical geopolitical situation affecting the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salmonids are an extensively hatchery-reared group of fishes that have been introduced worldwide mainly for their high commercial and recreational value. The Balkan Peninsula (south-eastern Europe) is characterised by an outstanding salmonid diversity that has become threatened by the introduction of nonnative salmonids whose potential risk of invasiveness in the region remains unknown and especially so under predicted climate change conditions. In this study, 13 extant and four horizon non-native salmonid species were screened for their risk of invasiveness in the Danube and Adriatic basins of four Balkan countries. Overall, six (35%) of the screened species were ranked as carrying a high risk of invasiveness under current climate conditions, whereas under predicted conditions of global warming, this number decreased to three (17%). Under current climate conditions, the very high risk ('top invasive') species were rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and brown trout Salmo trutta (sensu stricto), whereas under predicted climate change, this was true only of O. mykiss. A high risk was also attributed to horizon vendace Coregonus albula and lake charr Salvelinus namaycush, and to extant Atlantic salmon Salmo salar and brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis, whose risk of invasiveness, except for S. fontinalis, decreased to medium. For the other eleven medium-risk species, the risk score decreased under predicted climate change, but still remained medium. The outcomes of this study reveal that global warming will influence salmonids and that only species with wider temperature tolerance, such as O. mykiss will likely prevail. It is anticipated that the present results may contribute to the implementation of appropriate management plans to prevent the introduction and translocation of non-native salmonids across the Balkan Peninsula. Additionally, adequate measures should be developed for aquaculture facilities to prevent escapees of non-native salmonids with a high risk of invasiveness, especially into recipient areas of high conservation value. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-native aquatic plants are amongst the major threats to freshwater biodiversity and climate change is expected to facilitate their further spread and invasiveness. To date, in Croatia, no complete list of nonnative extant and horizon aquatic plants has been compiled nor has a risk screening been performed. To address this knowledge gap, 10 extant and 14 horizon aquatic plant species were screened for their risk of invasiveness in the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions of Croatia under current and predicted (future) climate conditions. Overall, 90% and 60% of the extant species were classified as high risk for the Pannonian and Mediterranean regions, respectively, under both climate scenarios. Of the horizon species, 42% were classified as high risk under current conditions and, under climate change, this proportion increased to 78%. The 'top invasive' species (i.e. scored as very high risk) under both climate conditions and for both regions were extant Elodea nuttallii and horizon Lemna aequinoctialis. The horizon Hygrophila polysperma was very high risk for the Mediterranean Region under current climate conditions and for both regions under projected climate conditions. Azolla filiculoides, Elodea canadensis, Egeria densa and Utricularia gibba were also classified as high risk under current climate conditions and, after accounting for climate change, they became of very high risk in both regions. Further, Gymnocoronis spilanthoides and Lemna minuta were found to pose a very high risk under climate change only for the Pannonian Region. It is anticipated that the outcomes of this study will contribute to knowledge of the invasiveness of aquatic plants in different climatic regions and enable prioritisation measures for their control/eradication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Marine protected areas of the Caribbean islands are at high risk of non‐native species (NNS) introductions and impacts that may threaten conservation goals. To inform conservation management of these protected areas, the present study identified potentially‐invasive NNS as well as introduction vectors and pathways for the southern Caribbean islands of Grenada, and St Vincent and the Grenadines.The activities associated with the introduction vectors and pathways relevant to priority NNS were assessed to highlight locations within the risk assessment area at elevated risk of NNS introduction and spread.The preliminary NNS list comprised 223 species of which 10 were screened using the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit, which generated scores indicating moderate‐to‐high risk (18–51) of being invasive in the risk assessment area, based on generalized global threshold scores. The ports of Kingston (St Vincent) and St George's (Grenada) were associated with the greatest shipping and boating activity, indicating elevated risk of NNS introductions by way of these vectors. Coastal areas in the south of the risk assessment area were associated with highest risk of introduction of NNS by natural dispersal.The evidence presented in this study provides a strong basis upon which to develop and implement risk‐based biosecurity and monitoring programmes to protect and conserve this region's marine protected areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A bstract: Biological invasions are a major driver of global environmental change as invasive non‐native species can exert severe environmental impacts on invaded ecosystems. Estuaries are especially vulnerable to biological invasions, which in highly urbanised areas are further facilitated by introduction pathways linked to commercial activities. This study provides a risk screening of non‐native invasive species for the highly urbanised River Neretva Estuary (Eastern Adriatic Sea: Croatia and Bosnia–Herzegovina). In total, 12 species of non‐native aquatic organisms were identified and screened for their invasiveness with the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit. Of these species, eight were classified as carrying a high risk of invasiveness under current climate conditions and nine under future climate conditions. Amongst the high‐risk species, blue crab Callinectes sapidus has already caused impacts in the risk assessment area, where it also represents an important economic resource. The "horizon" species Pacific oyster Crassostrea gigas and Manila clam Ruditapes philippinarum also carried a high risk of invasiveness, which for the latter species applied under predicted global warming. The present findings will contribute towards preventative management and control measures for the conservation of the natural ecosystem of the River Neretva Estuary whilst accounting for aquatic farming demands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Invasive non‐native species (NNS) are internationally recognized as posing a serious threat to global biodiversity, economies and human health. The identification of invasive NNS is already established, those that may arrive in the future, their vectors and pathways of introduction and spread, and hotspots of invasion are important for a targeted approach to managing introductions and impacts at local, regional and global scales. The aim of this study was to identify which marine and brackish NNS are already present in marine systems of the northeastern Arabia area (Arabian Gulf and Sea of Oman) and of these which ones are potentially invasive, and which species have a high likelihood of being introduced in the future and negatively affect biodiversity. Overall, 136 NNS were identified, of which 56 are already present in the region and a further 80 were identified as likely to arrive in the future, including fish, tunicates, invertebrates, plants and protists. The Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS‐ISK) was used to identify the risk of NNS being (or becoming) invasive within the region. Based on the AS‐ISK basic risk assessment (BRA) thresholds, 36 extant and 37 horizon species (53.7% of all species) were identified as high risk. When the impact of climate change on the overall assessment was considered, the combined risk score (BRA+CCA) increased for 38.2% of all species, suggesting higher risk under warmer conditions, including the highest‐risk horizon NNS the green crab Carcinus maenas, and the extant macro‐alga Hypnea musciformis. This is the first horizon‐scanning exercise for NNS in the region, thus providing a vital baseline for future management. The outcome of this study is the prioritization of NNS to inform decision‐making for the targeted monitoring and management in the region to prevent new bio‐invasions and to control existing species, including their potential for spread. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. Despite increasing reports of non-native freshwater fish dispersal in Poland, a risk identification and risk assessment (RA) of their current or future impacts has not been undertaken. In this study, to advise policy and management decisions the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK) was applied for the first time in Poland (the RA area) to identify whether or not non-native pumpkinseed, Lepomis gibbosus (Linnaeus, 1758), a freshwater sunfish, posed a high risk of being invasive in the RA area. Material and methods. The AS-ISK was used to screen L. gibbosus for its potential invasiveness in the RA area under current climate conditions of the RA area (i.e. humid continental) and future predicted climate conditions (i.e. temperature increase by 1.5--3.0°C). The risk screening was based on available evidence of the species' life-history traits (LHT) from its introduced European range, including both ambient and artificially-heated environments. Results. A LHT-based model for predicting L. gibbosus invasiveness revealed that the population in the Oder Canal, which receives heated-water discharge from the "Dolna Odra" electric power station, is amongst the most invasive in Europe. The basic AS-ISK score of 16.5 suggests the species already poses a risk of being invasive in Poland, and this risk is expected to increase under future, warmer climate conditions (AS-ISK Climate Change score = 28.5). Factors and traits affecting L. gibbosus' invasiveness were: current rate and range of spread, high climatic match, parental care, relatively small size at maturity, opportunistic foraging behaviour, and elevated likelihood of being illegally stocked. Conclusion. Although L. gibbosus is known to cause adverse impacts in some circumstances, these are poorly understood for most of Europe, including the RA area, where the species is likely to disperse and establish new viable populations more widely, especially under future climate conditions. This first application of AS-ISK in Poland emphasises the need for national-level risk screening of non-native species in general, and freshwater fishes in particular, as part of Poland's non-native species management strategy for the control and containment of invasive species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract To inform aquatic conservation policy and management decisions, translocated freshwater fish species, i.e. those native to part but not all of Great Britain (GB), were assessed with the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK) at two spatial levels (River Basin District [RBD] and GB overall), the outcome scores calibrated and analysed to determine the relevance of geographical scale (GB, RBD and freshwater ecoregion) on AS-ISK outcome score rankings. The 16 species assessed received scores that showed limited among-RBD variation, with all but only one species (silver bream Blicca bjoerkna) receiving the same risk ranking across all RBDs for which they were assessed. A trend of increasing AS-ISK score with decreasing RBD latitudinal location was observed, with two species (bleak Alburnus alburnus and tench Tinca tinca) found to have significantly higher AS-ISK scores in west-coast RBDs than in RBDs to the north and east, and one species (bleak Alburnus alburnus) to have significantly higher AS-ISK scores in southern RBDs than in northern RBDs. The Water Framework Directive classification of Scotland was found to be inconsistent with the latitudinal gradients in that country's environmental conditions, which are better reflected in the distinction of northern and southern freshwater ecoregions. The ramifications of these legislative classifications for aquatic conservation are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background. The 'Lessepsian migration' is a unidirectional phenomenon of successful biotic colonisation from the Red Sea into the eastern Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal. In this study, 45 Lessepsian marine fish species were screened for their potential invasiveness in the south-western coasts of Anatolia (Muğla region, Turkey), with the aim to inform policy makers on proper management and control measures. Materials and methods. Species were screened with the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK) for their potential invasiveness in the south-western coasts of Anatolia--the Risk Assessment (RA) area. Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to assess the predictive ability of AS-ISK to discriminate between the Lessepsian fish species posing a high risk and those posing a medium risk of being invasive for the RA area. The following species were studied: Alepes djedaba, Apogonichthyoides pharaonis, Atherinomorus forskalii, Bregmaceros nectabanus, Callionymus filamentosus, Champsodon nudivittis, Champsodon vorax, Cynoglossus sinusarabici, Dussumieria elopsoides, Equulites klunzingeri, Etrumeus golanii, Fistularia commersonii, Hemiramphus far, Herklotsichthys punctatus, Jaydia queketti, Jaydia smithi, Lagocephalus guentheri, Lagocephalus sceleratus, Lagocephalus spadiceus, Lagocephalus suezensis, Liza carinata, Nemipterus randalli, Ostorhinchus fasciatus, Oxyurichthys petersii, Parupeneus forsskali, Pelates quadrilineatus, Pempheris rhomboidea, Pomadasys stridens, Pteragogus pelycus, Pterois miles, Rachycentron canadum, Sargocentron rubrum, Saurida lessepsianus, Scomberomorus commerson, Siganus luridus, Siganus rivulatus, Sillago suezensis, Sphyraena chrysotaenia, Sphyraena flavicauda, Stephanolepis diaspros, Torquigener flavimaculosus, Trachurus indicus, Upeneus moluccensis, Upeneus pori, Vanderhorstia mertensi. Results. BRA and BRA + CCA thresholds of 18.5 and 29.5, respectively, were identified that reliably distinguished between potentially invasive (high risk) and potentially non-invasive (medium or low risk) species. Based on both thresholds, 14 species were categorised as high risk (amongst which devil firefish, Pterois miles, was the highestscoring one), 28 as medium risk, and one as low risk. The CCA resulted in an increase from the BRA score for 42 (93.3%) of the screened species, and 12 of these achieved the highest possible (positive) change in BRA + CCA score of 12 points. Conclusion. The thresholds set in the presently reported study for risk of invasiveness of the Lessepsian fishes under study in the south-western coasts of Anatolia can be transferred to other AS-ISK based applications in other RA areas in case of small sample sizes. The outcomes of this study will be of use to fish biologists, fisheries scientists and environmental managers/stakeholders in a joint effort to ensure better conservation and management actions with regard to the role of Lessepsian fishes in the RA area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In invasive species ecology, risk identification is an essential first step of the overall risk analysis process. In this study, 24 non-native freshwater macroinvertebrate species were screened for their level of risk of invasiveness in the Dnieper, Pripyat and Neman rivers and associated basins of Belarus. Using the recently-developed Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK), the threshold values of 12.25 for the Basic Risk Assessment (BRA) and 19.5 for the BRA + CCA (Climate Change Assessment) allowed identifying those species likely to be of high risk of invasiveness in the risk assessment area. For both the BRA and BRA+CCA, the highest-scoring species were zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha, spinycheek crayfish Orconectes limosus, quagga mussel Dreissena bugensis and Caspian mud shrimp Chelicorophium curvispinum, and for the BRA only signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus. For all species but one (namely, fragile ancylid Ferrissia fragilis classified as low risk), the CCA resulted in an increase in score relative to the BRA, indicating that predicted future global warming conditions are likely to exacerbate the detrimental impacts of these non-native macroinvertebrates of Ponto-Caspian origin. The present application of AS-ISK confirms the predictive value of the tool, and benefits from incorporation of future climate change scenarios. This is a crucial step in the provision of guidelines for the successful management of non-native invasive species and for conservation of native faunas in the (invaded) habitats of Belarus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Risk screening tools to identify species with a high or low risk of invasiveness are being increasingly used for effective management purposes. Amongst the available tools, the Fish Invasiveness Screening Kit (FISK) has been used extensively and successfully in large risk assessment (RA) areas, and was recently upgraded to the new generic tool Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK). The aim of the present study was to assess with AS-ISK the invasive potential of introduced non-native and translocated fishes in a Mediterranean-type shallow lake (Lake Marmara) located in west Anatolia (Turkey). Based on independent evaluations of 35 species by two assessors, calibration of AS-ISK resulted in a threshold score of -3.65, which reliably distinguished between potentially invasive (high risk) and potentially non-invasive (medium to low risk) fishes. Of the 35 species assessed, 17 were categorised as ‘low risk’ and included native/endemic and translocated natives, and the remaining 18 as ‘high risk’ and comprised non-natives and translocated natives.Carassius gibeliohad the highest score in the Climate Change Assessment section, suggesting that it might potentially impact on the native fish fauna under likely climate change scenarios for the RA area. Some cool water non-native (Oncorhynchus mykiss,Salvelinus fontinalis), translocated native (Luciobarbus lydianus) and endemic species (Ladigesocypris mermere) in the catchment will likely be affected negatively by predicted climate change conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Risk screening tools are being increasingly used to identify the potential invasiveness and associated risks of non-native species. In this study, the Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit was used to evaluate the invasiveness risks of extant and horizon non-native marine fish species for the coastal waters of South Korea. In total, 57 marine fish species were screened and the threshold scores for the Basic Risk Assessment (BRA) and the BRA + Climate Change Assessment (BRA+CCA) (5.5 and 1.5, respectively) reliably distinguished those species carrying a high risk of invasiveness from those carrying a low to medium risk. For both the BRA and BRA+CCA, common lionfish Pterois miles was the highest-scoring species, followed by white perch Morone americana , red drum Sciaenops ocellatus , marbled spinefoot Siganus rivulatus and redcoat Sargocentron rubrum. The outcomes of this study will contribute to the management of non-native marine fish species for the conservation of the native ecosystems in the coastal waters of South Korea. • Out of 57 marine fish species assessed, 18 were classified as high risk. • 45 species increased invasiveness risk by climate change assessment. • Climate change assessment resulted an increase in all very high risk species. • Standard errors indicated overall similarity in confidence levels and factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of biological invasions, freshwater aquatic invertebrates represent one of the most successful groups of organisms. At the same time, the secondary hydrographic system of a river catchment acts as a preferential pathway for the dispersion of Non-Indigenous Species (NIS) to nearby ecosystems. The present study investigates the macrozoobenthos assemblage inhabiting 13 representative semi-natural streams of the secondary hydrographic system of the southern course of the River Ticino (Lombardy, Northern Italy). The level of biocontamination of the habitats under study was assessed by the Site-specific BioContamination Index (SBCI), which was paired with a preliminary screening of the NIS that may cause ecological and economic impacts at the sites under study using the recently-developed Aquatic Species Invasiveness Screening Kit (AS-ISK) tool. The SBCI classified one stream as ‘high class’, one as ‘good class’, two as ‘moderate class’, seven as ‘poor class’, and the remaining two as ‘bad class’. Six macrozoobenthic NIS were identified, namely the amphipod Gammarus roeselii , the gastropods Physella acuta , Potamopyrgus antipodarum and Pseudosuccinea columella , the bivalve Corbicula fluminea and the limpet Ferrissia fragilis . Based on the AS-ISK outcomes, the most potentially invasive species were C. fluminea followed by P. columella , both of which were categorised as ‘high risk’. Also, the potential invasiveness of the above species increased after accounting for climate change predictions, as did that for all other species assessed, hence regardless of their corresponding risk level. By combining the results of the SBCI index with those from AS-ISK, a first step is provided towards the identification and refinement of potential management strategies aimed to reduce the impacts of NIS in the RAA, whilst accounting for predicted effects of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]