Minor harbours as dispersal hubs in the Mediterranean Sea: The case of non–indigenous species in an Italian port

Makaleler > Tam Makale · 2026

Yazarlar: Antonina Badalucco, Fabio Bozzeda, Fabio Crocetta, Andrea Desiderato, Cengiz KOÇAK, Joachim Langeneck, Emanuele Mancini, Caterina Martino, Francesco Mastrototaro, Serena Mucciolo, Luigi Musco, Maria Giovanna Parisi, Antonietta Rosso, Yann Toso, Sabrina Lo Brutto

REGIONAL STUDIES IN MARINE SCIENCE, SCI Expanded İndekslerine Giren Dergi, Uluslararası, 2026, cilt 100, ss 1-17

DOI: 10.1016/j.rsma.2026.105169

Özet

<p>The&nbsp;Mediterranean&nbsp;Sea&nbsp;is&nbsp;one&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;regions&nbsp;most&nbsp;severely&nbsp;affected&nbsp;by&nbsp;marine&nbsp;biological&nbsp;invasions,&nbsp;with&nbsp;maritime&nbsp;transport&nbsp;representing&nbsp;the&nbsp;principal&nbsp;pathway&nbsp;for&nbsp;the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;and&nbsp;secondary&nbsp;spread&nbsp;of&nbsp;non-indigenous&nbsp;species&nbsp;(NIS).&nbsp;In&nbsp;this&nbsp;context,&nbsp;ports&nbsp;act&nbsp;as&nbsp;key&nbsp;nodes&nbsp;facilitating&nbsp;the&nbsp;establishment&nbsp;and&nbsp;dispersal&nbsp;of&nbsp;foulingassociated&nbsp;taxa.&nbsp;Nevertheless,&nbsp;small&nbsp;and&nbsp;medium-sized&nbsp;harbours&nbsp;remain&nbsp;poorly&nbsp;investigated.&nbsp;This&nbsp;study&nbsp;provides&nbsp;the&nbsp;first&nbsp;comprehensive&nbsp;assessment&nbsp;of&nbsp;NIS&nbsp;and&nbsp;cryptogenic&nbsp;invertebrates&nbsp;associated&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;fouling&nbsp;communities&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;port&nbsp;of&nbsp;Trapani&nbsp;(north-western&nbsp;Sicily,&nbsp;central&nbsp;Mediterranean&nbsp;Sea),&nbsp;a&nbsp;harbour&nbsp;directly&nbsp;connected&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;Egadi&nbsp;Islands&nbsp;Marine&nbsp;Protected&nbsp;Area&nbsp;(MPA).&nbsp;The&nbsp;survey&nbsp;identified&nbsp;27&nbsp;taxa,&nbsp;with&nbsp;Peracarida&nbsp;and&nbsp;Polychaeta&nbsp;representing&nbsp;the&nbsp;most&nbsp;diverse&nbsp;components.&nbsp;To&nbsp;contextualise&nbsp;the&nbsp;findings,&nbsp;a&nbsp;Mediterranean-wide&nbsp;occurrence&nbsp;dataset&nbsp;was&nbsp;reconstructed&nbsp;through&nbsp;an&nbsp;extensive&nbsp;literature&nbsp;review.&nbsp;Species&nbsp;distributions&nbsp;were&nbsp;analysed&nbsp;across&nbsp;four&nbsp;Mediterranean&nbsp;biogeographical&nbsp;sectors,&nbsp;revealing&nbsp;strong&nbsp;spatial&nbsp;heterogeneity&nbsp;and&nbsp;marked&nbsp;geographical&nbsp;gaps&nbsp;in&nbsp;sampling&nbsp;effort,&nbsp;particularly&nbsp;along&nbsp;the&nbsp;North&nbsp;African&nbsp;coast.&nbsp;In&nbsp;parallel,&nbsp;maritime&nbsp;traffic&nbsp;data&nbsp;from&nbsp;the&nbsp;port&nbsp;of&nbsp;Trapani&nbsp;were&nbsp;analysed&nbsp;to&nbsp;evaluate&nbsp;potential&nbsp;pathways&nbsp;of&nbsp;dispersal.&nbsp;Results&nbsp;revealed&nbsp;intense&nbsp;liner&nbsp;and&nbsp;cruise&nbsp;vessel&nbsp;traffic&nbsp;connecting&nbsp;Trapani&nbsp;with&nbsp;several&nbsp;Mediterranean&nbsp;ports&nbsp;and&nbsp;transoceanic&nbsp;routes.&nbsp;The&nbsp;strategic&nbsp;position&nbsp;of&nbsp;Trapani,&nbsp;located&nbsp;between&nbsp;the&nbsp;Strait&nbsp;of&nbsp;Gibraltar&nbsp;and&nbsp;the&nbsp;Suez&nbsp;Canal,&nbsp;together&nbsp;with&nbsp;its&nbsp;proximity&nbsp;to&nbsp;the&nbsp;Egadi&nbsp;Islands&nbsp;MPA,&nbsp;highlights&nbsp;its&nbsp;importance&nbsp;as&nbsp;a&nbsp;potential&nbsp;stepping-stone&nbsp;hub&nbsp;for&nbsp;NIS&nbsp;dispersal&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;central&nbsp;Mediterranean.&nbsp;Considering&nbsp;the&nbsp;ecological&nbsp;vulnerability&nbsp;of&nbsp;the&nbsp;neighbouring&nbsp;MPA,&nbsp;the&nbsp;high&nbsp;density&nbsp;of&nbsp;NIS&nbsp;recorded&nbsp;suggests&nbsp;a&nbsp;significant&nbsp;risk&nbsp;of&nbsp;spillover.&nbsp;Therefore,&nbsp;we&nbsp;recommend&nbsp;the&nbsp;implementation&nbsp;of&nbsp;earlydetection&nbsp;protocols&nbsp;and&nbsp;a&nbsp;data-sharing&nbsp;system&nbsp;with&nbsp;the&nbsp;port&nbsp;authorities.&nbsp;Such&nbsp;management&nbsp;strategies&nbsp;are&nbsp;crucial&nbsp;to&nbsp;evaluate&nbsp;the&nbsp;progression&nbsp;of&nbsp;invasions&nbsp;from&nbsp;and&nbsp;towards&nbsp;this&nbsp;Mediterranean&nbsp;port&nbsp;and&nbsp;to&nbsp;mitigate&nbsp;the&nbsp;socio-economic&nbsp;and&nbsp;ecological&nbsp;impacts&nbsp;of&nbsp;NIS.</p>

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