LITTLE GREEN PINCHERS

 Welcome back to another exciting week of MARINE INVASIVE SPECIES, my fellow bloggers and on lookers. so far we have seen killer plants and zebra clams. This week you are in for a treat, literally. As explore the wondrous works of the Green Crab (Carcinus Maenas) also known as the European crab.

This little crustacean has moved all the way from its native waters of Europe and dug its way into both the East and West coast of America, in Southern South America, Australia, South Africa and Japan. These little critters may seem harmless and just an ordinary crab at most but they destroy entire ecosystems in their paths. It is taught they they have been introduced through ballast water, hull fouling and sadly intentional releases. They prey on many coastal organisms such as; worms, soft shell clams, scallops and even other crustaceans. Having a voracious they eat and eat without having any remorse for the ecosystems in which they inhabit. In addition to destruction of ecosystems they have also made a dent in commercial shellfish industries. In the control of this crab there is only one way and this to kill them

. There has not been any known natural predators of this crab other than large birds and some fishes.well that's it for this week folks i'll leave a little video here for you it's a short documentary i uncovered hope you enjoy and see you again next week :)

KILLER ALGAE - LEAN GREEN KILLING MACHINES

 Greetings and WELCOME to another fascinating and mind tingling weekly update of MARINE INVASIVE SPECIES. This week i will like to go a bit on the green side and not global warming green but more like, under water grass green, with this week's topic being on the invasive species KILLER ALGAE.

KILLER ALGAE ( Caulerpa taxifolia)

 The name KILLER ALGAE is not joke this plant species is toxic. This species which is native to the Indian Ocean was introduced to Monaco in the year 1984. It is believed that an aquarium museum while cleaning its tanks a small piece of the algae got away an was washed into a near by stream which then led to a massive out break and now an uncontrollable population which has reached the Mediterranean Sea and Southern California. Other methods which may have caused the spread of this species are net fouling and ballast water.

They can live and thrive in waters with temperatures between 14 degrees Celsius and 32 degrees Celsius. they not only reproduces by segmentation it grows at an alarming rate at which it can grow 1 cm PER DAY that's like 7 cm per week. WOW that's fast.

DIVER  INVESTIGATING KILLER ALGAE 

 This species has a nasty effect in the areas they inhabit. It spreads rapidly that it easily over populates and replaces any native algae and sea grass. This is not the only problem as stated before this algae is highly toxic to herbivores who would feed on them as their food source that would have been replaced by the KILLER ALGAE

 NOW IS THIS NOT A TRUE KILLER.


 Do tune in next week as i seek to explore the ways in which this KILLER can be controlled and groomed.

CONTROL, REDUCE & DESTROY THE STRIPES

GOOD DAY FOLKS. Welcome back to my blog, this has surely been a tough week for all E.S.S.T Students at UWI but all in all we made it through :) . Last week we learned about a shell invader, the Zebra Mussel. Now as promised in my last post we are going to know what methods are used to control and reduce these populations that plague our waters. Its sad to say that most scientists believe that the zebra mussels can't be controlled or eradicated so easily, many methods have been used to control these invaders and get rid of infestations. One of these methods being a chlorine treatment. this had a negative effect on the environment itself. if not applied with care the and accuracy it will harm the direct environment itself which they are trying to save. The chlorine is an effective way in which to rid of the invaders but with large amounts of zebra mussels dying and piling up the clean up process is a painful one. 

Chlorine treatment of zebra mussels 

   Another effective and environmentally safe method of removal is by use of high pressure washers. but this method is very expensive and time consuming also the mussels could be back within a year's time because of young and the rate at which the spawn because the pressure washers only removes them and not kills them. 

Power washing of zebra mussels 

   But when push comes to shove one of the best ways in which to deal with these invaders is to learn how to adapt and live with them. this method is less time consuming and less strenuous this is the introduction of new infrastructure, like pipes in order to accommodate mussels. the Europeans developed this method since zebra mussels have been with them for many years. Instead one set of pipes designers build two sets this is for in the event of one clogging the other can be used while one is locked off for cleaning. 

    A few other notable mentions of methods that are being investigated are; thermal changes, ultraviolet light and electrical current filters.This makes life simpler as these are living organisms on earth which we are yet to see the benefit of but maybe they hold the key to our future survival. Well that's all for this week folks please stay tuned in as we venture into the cold waters to find more invasive species in the Marine.

WHAT IS A MARINE INVASIVE SPECIES YOU ASK?

GREETINGS AND GOOD DAY my fellow bloggers and readers I AM BACK AGAIN. Last time we met I had introduced my topic to you and now with its continuation. 

   Today i would like to give you an insight to what, MARINE INVASIVE SPECISES are and describe one of the many species out in our deep blue waters. Marine Invasive Species are plants and aquatic animals that evolved in one location and are introduced through a variety of means into another location. Be it swimming or attaching itself to ride on a log, leaf, coconut, ships, and another organisms these Species have found new worlds in which to prosper. An invasive, or non-native, Marine species can be any organism that exists somewhere in water where it doesn't belong. When an alien species like this arrives in a new location, several things can happen: It can find its new habitat unwelcoming and die off; it can survive with little environmental impact; or it can take over, harming the naturally existing wildlife it was introduced to in a variety of ways.

   Invasive species that thrive in its new environment usually do so because their new habitat lacks natural predators to regulate their population. They do damage mainly by consuming native species, competing with them for food and space.

  One notorious example I would like to bring to your attention today is the zebra mussel and no they are not fast like the actual Zebra we have on land and was given its name by its stripes on it's shell.

 

IMAGE OF ZEBRA MUSSELS

  This species was accidentally introduced by a cargo ship into the North American Great Lakes from the Black Sea in 1988. The tiny mollusk reproduced uncontrollably as a result this caused the starving out many of the Great Lakes' native mussel populations and meddling with human structures such as factory pipes to ship rudders. They have now spread from Canada to Mexico and are considered a major nuisance species. This causes millions of dollars to be used for the control of this species yearly. Now isn’t that a problem. :O

  The Zebra mussels are small, fingernail-sized animals that attach to solid surfaces in water. Adults are 1/4 to 1-1/2 inches long and have D-shaped shells, often with alternating yellow and brownish coloured stripes. Female zebra mussels can produce 100,000 to 500,000 eggs per year. This is a fast rate at which these grow meaning if you were to even remove some one female could make close to half a million more in just a mere 365 days.

 IMAGE OF LARGE AMOUNT OF ZEBRA MUSSEL

  Well that wraps up this week’s post folks. I hope you found this species interesting and come back for more next week when we talk about ways in which to help curb and control the spread of the Zebra Mussels. And many more to come.

INTRODUCTION

Greetings and salutations.

                  I am Nigel Williams Bailey, a freshman student and the University of the West Indies, St. Augustine Campus, Trinidad. I am at this point pursuing a degree in Environmental Science And Sustainable Technology. I have chosen to do this degree for the world we live in is moving forward and more and more sustainable ideas are needed to ensure the future generations has a clean, green and sustainable environment to prosper within. This way i could have given back to humanity.
   I look forward to experiencing new and fantastic adventures within my chosen Degree option. In one of my courses, Science Communication i was presented with a list of topics to chose from for my assignments this semester, one of which is this blog.
   This blog was created for the main purpose of relating research on my topic of choice to the general public, "MARINE INVASIVE SPECIES." Over the next few weeks i shall update my blog weekly on various types of Invasive Species within out Marine systems and how they affect us and our environment. Do stay tuned in.

Yours respectfully,

Nigel Williams Bailey.