Alien Species and
Climate Change
Olivia Gray, Morgane Evans-Voigt, Lauren Poon
www.ascensionearth2012.org
Introduction
Mechanisms Underlying Invasion Success
Altered Thermal Regimes
Reduced Ice Cover
Altered Streamflow Regimes
Increased Salinity
Increased Water Development
Migration and Invasion
Lack of Knowledge and Research Needs
Introduction
Walther et al. 2009 based their review on climate mediated biological invasions
of invertebrates, fish, birds, and plants with a focus on the increase of global
temperature
Alters population dynamics, structure and composition of a population, and the
functioning of ecosystems
http://julzworldofwonder.blogspot.ca/
The Invasion Process
Walther et al. 2009
Mechanisms Underlying Invasion
Success
Rahel & Olden 2008
Rahel & Olden 2008
Altered Thermal Regimes
Air temperatures
= Water temperatures
Source:: Adapted from Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Impacts: physiology, behaviour, bioenergetics, and biogeography.
Thermal Regimes: Altered Pathways of Species
Introductions
●
●
●
Source: Brian Andrews
Source: United States Department of Agriculture
Source: Lena Svensson
Warmwater aquaculture
Tropical fish culture
Outdoor water gardens
Thermal Regimes: Facilitating
Colonization and Successful
Reproduction
Species
Optimal Temperature
Coldwater
< 20 ◦C
Coolwater
20-28 ◦C
Warmwater
> 28 ◦C
Source: Sea Grant.
Thermal Regimes: Mediation of the
Impacts of Non-Native Species
● Shifts in dominance
● Increase in food consumption
● Higher density of pathogens
Taniguchi et al. 1998.
Karvonen et al. 2010.
Thermal Regimes: Changes to Control
Strategies and Their Initiation
Source: North American Invasive Species Network.
Thermal Regimes: Changes to Control
Strategies and Their Initiation
1974
2012
Source: Okanagan Basin Water Board.
Eurasion watermillfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) invasion in
Okanagan Valley. Source: Okanagan Basin Water Board.
Reduced Ice Cover
Source: Planetary Visions / University of Waterloo, Canada / ESA
Ice Cover: Altered Pathways of
Species Introductions
Ice Cover
= Sport Fishing
Source: Clive Matheus
= Non-Native Fish Species
Ice Cover: Facilitating Colonization and
Successful Reproduction
●
Increased light could
allow for colonization
of new species (Rahel 2004)
●
Climate warming will
reduce the extent of ice
over and thus lessen
the occurrence of
winter hypoxia (Stefan et al
2001)
http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/03/31/455612/great-lakes-icecover-down-71-since-1973/
Ice Cover: Mediation of the
Impacts of Non-Native Species
●
Decrease in hypoxia kill off allowing non-native fish to
survive (Strayer 1999)
●
Increased predation due to decrease in cover/protection
(Greenwood and Metcalfe 1998)
http://english.cri.cn/6966/2013/02/06/2821s747213.htm
Ice Cover: Changes to Control
Strategies and Their Initiation
● Management to protect local species from extirpation
● Removal of non-native predatory fish
Altered Streamflow Regimes
Climate change will modify patterns of
precipitation, evapotranspiration and runoff
(Rahel & Olden 2008)
Streamflow: Altered Pathways of
Species Introductions
● Escapes from Aquaculture and
Tropical Fish Farm Facilities
● Zebra Mussel Dispersal
● Non-Native
Riparian Plants in
River ecosystems
● Secondary Spread
of Non-Native
Species
Streamflow: Facilitating Colonization
and Successful Reproduction
● Altered flow regimes remove a filter that limits the
occurrence of non-native species
● Increased drought conditions and prolonged low flows
may enhance establishment of non-native species (Rahel &
Olden 2008)
Red swamp crayfish (Procambarus
clarkii)
http://phys.org/news/2012-03-carp-dominate-crayfish-invasivespecies.html
Mud snail (Potamopyrgus
antipodarum)
http://www.ryanphotographic.com/hydrobiidae.htm
Streamflow: Mediation of the
Impacts of Non-Native Species
Greater concentration of native and non-native species
● Increased predation
of native species
(Rahel & Olden 2008)
● Increased hybridization
(Rahel & Olden 2008)
Streamflow: Changes to Control
Strategies and Their Initiation
● Changes to current
management
● Restoration of
natural flow regimes
● Effectiveness of
barriers
http://www.seagrant.sunysb.edu/articles/t/controlling-sea-lamprey-in-lake-ontariotributaries-a-first-for-new-york-state-coastal-community-development-program-news
http://the-crimsonwolf.deviantart.com/art/Clarenc
e-the-Sea-Lamprey-112930285
Increased Salinity
Precipitation +
Salinity
Evaporation =
Surface Runoff =
(Rahel et al. 2008)
http://freshwaterblog.net/2015/02/18/low-water-and-high-salinity-theeffects-of-climate-change-and-water-abstraction-on-lake-ecosystems/
Salinity:Altered Pathways of
Species Introductions
bwbearthenviro2011.wikispaces.co
m
Increasing salinity in coastal waters may increase the
probability of survival of propagules in ballast water
Exp: Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis)
www.kraftpowercon.com
Salinity: Facilitating Colonization and
Successful Reproduction
Aquatic systems in arid regions
that are naturally saline are
likely to become even more
saline (Rahel & Olden 2008)
Chinese mitten crab
Limited to water with >15%
salinity in order to
reproduce
(Herborg et al. 2007)
www.wessexscene.co.uk
www.telegraph.co.uk
Salinity: Mediation of the Impacts of
Non-Native Species
Salinity can influence the outcome of competition between
aquatic species (Rahel & Olden 2008)
Salinity-intolerant species may
experience osmotic stress,
which can cause them to grow
more slowly than salinitytolerant species (Rahel & Olden 2008)
gallery.nanfa.org
Exp: Colorado River system - Red
shiner, western mosquitofish,
and plains killifish (Olden et al. 2006)
gallery.nanfa.org
www.aquabid.com
Salinity: Changes to Control Strategies
and Their Initiation
Difficult to predict
Increased salinity could
reduce invasions of nonnative species intolerant
of saline conditions (Higgens
& Wilde 2005)
www.desertm
useum.org
Management may need to account for salt deposits in
riparian soils (Rahel & Olden 2008)
Exp: Salt Cedar (Tamarix)
Increased Water Development
● Decreases in annual runoff will result
in less surface water for human use
leading to a surge in new reservoirs to
increase water supplies (Vorosmarty et al 2004)
● Reservoirs will be built for flood
control
● Increased pressure for water
transportation to areas where it is less
abundant
http://www.usbr.gov/mp/cvp/images/friant_kern_canal_large.jpg
WaterDevelopment: Altered Pathways
of Species Introductions
● Canals transport water and organisms across what
historically were biogeographic barriers to species
movement (Rahel 2007)
● Sea lampreys (Petromyzon marinus) and alewife (Alosa
pseudoharengus) colonized the upper Laurentian Great
Lakes through the Welland Canal.
Water Development: Facilitating
Colonization and Successful Reproduction
Replace flowing waters with standing water
Eliminates a filter that prevents establishment of species
whose reproductive and trophic needs cannot be met by
flowing water
Bluegill (L. macrochirus)
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-44s0_xfvUgs/TfVHCoITHI/AAAAAAAAAQA/ovpCZp0yQJo/s1600/IMG_0023.JPG
Water Development: Mediation of the
Impacts of Non-Native Species
● Reservoirs may influence biotic interactions between native and non-native
species (Rahel 2008)
● Largemouth bass impounded within reservoirs in Kansas extirpated
endangered Topeka shiners (Notropis topeka) (Schrank et al. 2001)
● Reservoirs may increase the occurrence of disease organisms that favour the
conditions
● M. Cerebralis is the parasite that causes whirling disease, thrives in warm
temperatures in silty reservoirs as they favour its host, Tubifex tubifex
http://andershalverson.com/whirling-disease
Water Development: Changes to
Control Strategies and Their Initiation
Barrier
Additions
http://prairierivers.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Carp-barrier-artist.gif
Review: Impacts of Climate
Change on Aquatic Systems
●
●
●
●
●
Altered thermal regimes
Reduction in ice cover
Altered streamflow regimes
Increased salinity
Increased water development
Case Study 1: European Green Crab
(Carcinus maenus)
Invasive predator on coastlines of all countries
except Antarctica
Consumes juvenile native bivalves
Tolerant of a wide range of water salinity and
temperatures, and very adaptable (Stanford
University 2013)
Source: National Introduced Marine Pest Information System (NIMPIS), Australia
Limitation: Winters with below average
temperatures
Warmer water temperatures may expand
establishment and reduce populations of
native bivalves
http://www.asnailsodyssey.com/LEARNABOUT/CR
AB/crabComp2.php
Case Study 2: Zebra Mussels
(Dreissena polymorpha)
Consume native phytoplankton
Estimated to cost $1 billion
annually
Increasing temperatures may lead to
more dispersal by recreational boaters
(EPA 2008)
Stressors: High temperature conditions
in low altitude and high turbidity
conditions
(EPA 2008)
www.nature.org
Case Study 3: Smallmouth bass
Smallmouth bass and lake
trout both consume
littoral cyprinids
Expected to extend range to
most of Canada by 2100
(Sharma & Jackson 2008)
Will decrease lake trout
growth and reproduction
and change fish species
composition
(Sharma et al. 2009)
www.knoxnews.com
Climate Change Blurs Migration and
Invasion
A cryptogenic species is one that may be native or
introduced, there is a lack of clear evidence for either
origin (Walther et al 2009).
http://giphy.com/search/who-are-you
Lack of Knowledge and Research
Needs
● Associated feedbacks of climate change
● Effects of changes in water column stratification, pH, and
changes in ocean currents
● Maintaining ecosystem functioning as native
communities reassemble and establish to adapt to a new
climate regime
Lack of Knowledge and Research
Needs
● Few examples of geographic range shifts by freshwater
species. (Rahel & Olden 2008)
o Focus on species that are of great interest to the
public, relatively easy to census or commercially
important
o Better understanding of what limits the current
distribution of invasive species is needed before the
influence of climate change on the spread of invasive
species can be predicted accurately (Rahel & Olden 2008)
QUESTIONS
www.filmaffinity.com
Discussion Questions
From the various impacts of climate change discussed,
which one do you think is the most detrimental to fish
in the future?
Rahel & Olden 2008
Discussion Questions
In order to reduce potential introduction of non-native
fish species, do you think sportfishing should be
banned in lakes that are starting to have a reduction in
ice cover?
Credit: Carol Arnold
Discussion Questions
Do native species benefit from climate change?
Discussion Questions
Do you think that management solutions such as
migration barriers are harming or helping the future
of aquatic ecosystems?
Source: http://barbarafmanning.blogspot.ca/2013/01/communication-snags-part-1.html
Discussion Questions
Do you care more about climate change or the war on
terror?
Source: http://goodolewoody.me/2012/11/02/climate-change-cartoon-1/
References
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Havel, J.E., C.E. Lee, and M.J. Vander Zanden. 2005. Do reservoirs facilitate invasions into landscapes? BioScience 55: 518-525.
Herborg, L.H., C.L. Jerde, D.M. Lodge, G.M. Ruiz, and H.J. MacIsaac. 2007. Predicting invasion risk using measures of introduction effort and environmental niche models. Ecological
Applications 17: 663-674.
Karvonen, A., Rintamäki, P., Jokela, J., & Valtonen, E. T. 2010. Increasing water temperature and disease risks in aquatic systems: climate change increases the risk of some, but not all,
diseases. International journal for parasitology 40: 1483-1488.
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Rahel, F. J. 2007. Biogeographic barriers, connectivity, and biotic homogenization: it’s a small world after all. Freshwater Biology 52:696–710
Rahel, F. J., & Olden, J. D. 2008. Assessing the effects of climate change on aquatic invasive species. Conservation Biology 22:, 521-533.
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Schrank, S. J., C. S. Guy,M. R.Whiles, and B. L. Brock. 2001. Influence of instream and landscape-level factors on the distribution of Topeka shiners Notropis topeka in Kansas streams.
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References (cont.)
Taniguchi, Y., F. J. Rahel, D. C. Novinger, and K. G. Gerow. 1998. Temperature mediation of competitive interactions among three fish species that replace each other along
longitudinal stream gradients. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 55:1894–1901.
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Environmental Assessment, Washington, DC; EPA/600/R-08/014.
Vörösmarty, C., Lettenmaier, D., Leveque, C., Meybeck, M., Pahl‐Wostl, C., Alcamo, J. & Naiman, R. (2004). Humans transforming the global water system. Eos, Transactions
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Walther, G. R., Roques, A., Hulme, P. E., Sykes, M. T., Pyšek, P., Kühn, I., ... & Settele, J. (2009). Alien species in a warmer world: risks and opportunities. Trends in ecology & evolution,
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