A new record of the invasive seaweed Caulerpa cylindracea Sonder in the South Adriatic Sea

Andrea Pierucci; Gina De La Fuente; Rita Cannas; Mariachiara Chiantore

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02449

A new record of the invasive seaweed Caulerpa cylindracea Sonder in the South Adriatic Sea

Heliyon. 2019 Sep 28;5(9):e02449. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2019.e02449. eCollection 2019 Sep.

Authors

Andrea Pierucci¹, Gina De La Fuente², Rita Cannas¹, Mariachiara Chiantore²

Affiliations

¹ University of Cagliari, Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, Via T. Fiorelli, 1, Cagliari, 09126, Italy.
² University of Genoa, Department for the Earth, Environment and Life Sciences, Corso Europa, 26, Genoa, 16132, Italy.

Abstract

The green alga Caulerpa cylindracea Sonder is one of the most infamous and threatening invasive species in the Mediterranean Sea. Since 1985, it started rapidly spreading to all Mediterranean regions causing many ecological changes on natural communities. In the present study, we present an example of this proliferation with the first record in the Marine Protected Area of Tremiti Island (MPATI) in the South Adriatic Sea. Fifteen sites along the coast and 5 different depths have been investigated. Our results provide eveidence of a wide invasion of this pest in three islands, San Domino, San Nicola and Capraia. This study fills a particular data gap in the ongoing biomonitoring of invasive seaweeds in the Mediterranean Sea representing a base line of this invasive species for the MPATI.

Keywords: Aquatic ecology; Bioinvasion; Biological pollutants; Caulerpa cylindracea; Ecology; Ecosystem change; Environmental science; Flora; Invasive macrophytes; Mediterranean sea; Tropicalisation.