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Population expansion of the invasive sea anemone Metridium senile in the spatial mesoscale of a sea urchin bed in north-western Patagonia

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Abstract

This article analyses the detection and expansion of the invasive sea anemone Metridium senile at spatial meso- and microscale in an exploited bed of the edible sea urchin Loxechinus albus, which is part of the population monitoring of its fishery in southern Chile. By analysing images recorded from video transects between 2014 and 2021, and applying geostatistical and multidimensional methods, changes in the presence and expansion of M. senile, the biodiversity of the associated community, and changes in the sea urchin bed were evaluated. Metridium senile was first recorded at this site in 2016 and since then it increased in coverage (up to 39%), presence by area (75%) and patch diameter (up to 343 m). The Shannon diversity index of the benthic community decreased from 1.43 to 0.016, while non-metric multidimensional scaling showed a gradient in species composition and relative year-to-year importance, suggesting a transition towards M. senile dominance in the community studied. Both the density and patches size of the studied sea urchin bed decreased heavily down to 1 sea urchin/10 m2 and 20 m diameter, respectively, between 2019 and 2021. This suggests a shrinking subpopulation that may have been displaced due to the expansion of M. senile. Based on information available on M. senile in the northern hemisphere, it is suspected that its expansion in north-western Patagonia is still ongoing. Our results suggest a serious threat to the biodiversity of local benthic communities, including species that are commercially important to small-scale fisheries. Thus, further research on the invasive M. senile expansion, its effects and its potential management is a priority.

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Data Availability Statements

We declare that the submission to Biological Invasions implies that materials described in the manuscript, including all relevant raw data, will be freely available to any researcher wishing to use them for non-commercial purposes, without breaching participant confidentiality.

Notes

  1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/mt9g8nzueu4eiz2/SupportingData-2-PuntaPicuta_February_2021.MP4?dl=0.

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Acknowledgements

This study was conducted with the results of the IFOP-UACH agreement under the framework of the Asesoría Integral en Pesca y Acuicultura, Programa de Seguimiento de Pesquerías Bentónicas (Comprehensive Fisheries and Aquaculture Assessment, Benthic Fisheries Monitoring Programme), carried out by the Instituto de Fomento Pesquero (Fisheries Development Institute) for the Chilean Undersecretariat of Fisheries and Aquaculture (SUBPESCA) and financed by the Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism. Two anonymous reviewers contributed significantly to improve this article, so we truly appreciate their contribution.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Programa de Investigación Pesquera, Universidad Austral de Chile, Puerto Montt, Chile

    Carlos Molinet, Manuel Diaz, Jorge Henríquez & Thamara Matamala

  2. Instituto de Acuicultura, Universidad Austral de Chile, 1327, Puerto Montt, Chile

    Carlos Molinet & Marcela Astorga

  3. Centro FONDAP Interdisciplinario Para la Investigación Acuícola INCAR, Concepción, Chile

    Carlos Molinet & Doris Soto

  4. Facultad de Recursos Naturales, Escuela de Ciencias del Mar, Universidad Católica de Valparaiso, Valparaiso, Chile

    Verena Häussermann

  5. Instituto de Fomento Pesquero, Valparaíso, Chile

    Nancy Barahona

  6. Centro I~Mar, Universidad de Los Lagos, Puerto Montt, Chile

    Patricio Díaz

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  1. Carlos Molinet
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Data collection was performed by: CM, KE, MD. Data analysis was performed by CM, PD, JH, TM. The first draft of the manuscript was written by: CM, VH, MA, NB, DS. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Carlos Molinet.

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We declare that we have not any financial and personal relationships with other people or organizations that could inappropriately influence (bias) the manuscript: Detection and expansion of the invasive sea anemone Metridium senile in a spatial mesoscale in north-western Patagonia: Changes in the benthic fauna associated with Loxechinus albus beds. The work is all original research carried out by the authors. All authors agree with the contents of the manuscript and its submission to the journal. No part of the research has been published in any form elsewhere, unless it is fully acknowledged in the manuscript. The manuscript is not being considered for publication elsewhere while it is being considered for publication in this journal. Any research in the paper not carried out by the authors is fully acknowledged in the manuscript. All sources of funding are acknowledged in the manuscript, and authors have declared any direct financial benefits that could result from publication.

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Molinet, C., Häussermann, V., Astorga, M. et al. Population expansion of the invasive sea anemone Metridium senile in the spatial mesoscale of a sea urchin bed in north-western Patagonia. Biol Invasions 25, 1101–1118 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-022-02965-6

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