This news from Great Lakes United --
The Chinese mitten crab has been found in the St. Lawrence River. It is one of the “100 most invasive and undesirable species in the world.” There is the concern that it will establish in lower portions of the River, as the crab requires salty conditions in order to reproduce. The crab has been found in the Great Lakes, but it has not been able to establish populations in the freshwater environment.
Ballast water discharge from transoceanic shipping is reported as the likely mode of introduction. The paper concludes that “the observation of a new invasive species in the St. Lawrence River has provided further evidence that introduction via maritime shipping continues to be a persistent and unresolved problem, and points to the clear and urgent need for better management of strategies of ship ballast vectors.”
Citation:
de Lafountaine, Y. (2005) “First Record of the Chinese Mitten Crab (Eriocheir sinenis) in the St. Lawrence River, Canada” Journal of Great Lakes Research, 31: 367-370
Posted by Dave at September 12, 2005 12:47 PM