Document Type
Article
Department/Program
Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Publication Date
2017
Journal
KNOWLEDGE AND MANAGEMENT OF AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS
Issue
418
Abstract
In this work, the presence of the channel catfish Ictalurus punctatus in the Portuguese section of the Guadiana drainage (Iberian Peninsula) is confirmed based on morphological and molecular species identification. The spatial and temporal dispersal of this non-native catfish was also reconstructed for the Guadiana drainage, based mostly on online fishermen records with minor contributions from the few scientific reports available. The obtained records (mainly from angling fora) span the period since the species' first reported presence in Iberia (1980s) up to the present, and support a westward invasion pattern of non-native fish (NNF) reported for the Iberian fish invasion hotspot. The invasion pathway is driven mainly by natural dispersal downstream at a rate between 8 and 42 km per year. Yet, at least four introduction events within the Guadiana drainage can unambiguously be assigned to human translocations after the initial human-mediated introduction. The present study reinforces the usefulness and relevance of using validated on-line fishermen records, provides a more complete and updated distribution range of NNF species and enables assessment of their dispersal patterns. This is of particular importance because it allows near real-time monitoring of NNF dispersal, including first occurrences of NNF, at minimal cost.
DOI
10.1051/kmae/2017045
Keywords
GUADIANA RIVER-BASIN; WATER FISH INTRODUCTIONS; IBERIAN PENINSULA; CHANNEL CATFISH; FRESH-WATERS; SPATIAL-DISTRIBUTION; PORTUGAL; BIODIVERSITY; DISPERSAL; SELECTION
Sponsor
We thank Mr. Paulo Mata Pinto for his help in Ictalurus punctatus capture in the Alqueva reservoir. This work was supported by the FRISK Project (Ref. PTDC/AAG-MAA/0350/2014); strategic plan of MARE - Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre (UID/MAR/04292/2013) and by the MARE mini-grants project "Analise das rotas de dispersao de peixes invasores predadores na Peninsula Iberica". F. Banha and F. Ribeiro were supported by post-doctoral grants from MARE (MAR-04292). A. Verissimo was funded by Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (SFRH/BPD/77487/2011).
Recommended Citation
Banha, Filipe; Verissimo, Ana; Ribeiro, Filipe; and Filipe, Anastacio, Forensic reconstruction of Ictalurus punctatus invasion routes using on-line fishermen records (2017). KNOWLEDGE AND MANAGEMENT OF AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS.
10.1051/kmae/2017045
