Introduced Species Survey
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
ISSN: 1328-5548 Marine and Freshwater Resources Institute Report No. 4 Exotic Marine Pests in the Port of Hastings, Victoria. D. R. Currie and D. P. Crookes December 1997 Marine and Freshwater Resources Institute PO Box 114 Queenscliff 3225 CONTENTS SUMMARY 1 1. BACKGROUND 2 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PORT OF HASTINGS 3 2.1 Shipping movements 3 2.2 Port development and maintenance activities 4 2.21 Dredge and spoil dumping 4 2.22 Pile construction and cleaning 5 3. EXISTING BIOLOGICAL INFORMATION 5 4. SURVEY METHODS 6 4.1 Phytoplankton 6 4.11 Sediment sampling for cyst-forming species 6 4.12 Phytoplankton sampling 6 4.2 Trapping 7 4.3 Zooplankton 7 4.4 Diver observations and collections on wharf piles 7 4.5 Visual searches 7 4.6 Epibenthos 8 4.7 Benthic infauna 8 4.8 Seine netting 8 4.9 Sediment analysis 8 5. SURVEY RESULTS 9 5.1 Port environment 9 5.2 Introduced species in port 9 5.21 ABWMAC target introduced species 9 5.22 Other target species 11 5.23 Additional exotic species detected 12 5.24 Adequacy of survey intensity 13 6. IMPACT OF EXOTIC SPECIES 13 7. ORIGIN AND POSSIBLE VECTORS FOR THE INTRODUCTION OF EXOTIC SPECIES FOUND IN THE PORT. 14 8. INFLUENCES OF THE PORT ENVIRONMENT ON THE SURVIVAL OF INTRODUCED SPECIES. 15 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 16 REFERENCES 17 TABLES 1-6 21 FIGURES 1-5 25 APPENDICES 1 & 2 36 SUMMARY The Port of Hastings in Westernport Bay was surveyed for introduced species between 4th and 15th of March 1997. The survey focused on habitats in the vicinity of commercial wharves that were likely to be colonised by introduced species and a variety of techniques were used to detect exotic species. Potential ‘pest’ species identified by the Australian Ballast Water Management Advisory Council (ABWMAC) were targeted in particular. The survey closely followed guidelines produced by the CSIRO Centre for Research on Introduced Marine Pests (CRIMP). A total of 355 species were collected during the survey but only 7 of these species were confirmed as introduced. The following exotic species were found in the Port of Hastings: the European shore crab Carcinus maenus; the European clam Corbula gibba; the Asian mussel Musculista senhousia; the Asian bivalve Theora lubrica; and the cosmopolitan bryozoans Bugula dentata, Bugula neritina and Watersipora subtorquata. The only ABWMAC target species found was Carcinus maenus. Bugula dentata was the only exotic species abundant enough in Port of Hastings to cause a significant ecological impact. This bryozoan forms erect flexible growths and carpets the surfaces of pier pylons at all commercial wharves in the Port of Hastings. Bugula dentata has been present in Westernport Bay for more than 20 years and was probably first introduced on the hulls of ships or pleasure craft. The Port of Hastings receives more ballast water than any other commercial port in Victoria and is therefore particularly susceptible to introductions of exotic larvae. Most vessels currently entering port have a domestic last port of call and the majority of these emanate from either Port Kembla or Botany Bay. As both these mainland ports contain exotic species also recorded from the Port of Hastings, both have been identified as likely sources of current and future introductions. Port Phillip Bay which is now infested with exotics and geographically close to Westernport Bay is also recognised as potential source for further introductions. Proposed increases in oil tanker movements between the Port of Geelong and the Port of Hastings will undoubtedly increase the risk of organism transfers between the two bays. However shipping translocations are not the only threat to the ecology of Westernport Bay. Water circulation models for northern Bass Strait suggest that some exotics will inevitably reach Westernport Bay as larvae carried in coastal currents from Port Phillip Heads. The rapid tidal currents which flow past all commercial berths in the Port of Hastings may be responsible for the relatively low number of exotic species established near the port. Such currents probably hinder larval settlement in the immediate vicinity of the wharves, and may serve to transport larvae discharged in ballast water into unsuitable habitat. Conversely these same currents may assist in the wide and rapid distribution of introductions better suited to other environments within Westernport Bay. 1 1. BACKGROUND The transport of species on the hulls and in the ballast water of international shipping, and the subsequent establishment of exotic organisms in foreign ports is not a new phenomenon (Byrne et al., 1997). The issue has only received attention in recent years as the magnitude of impacts caused by introductions on native species become more apparent. The devastating effects of introductions such as the zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha into the Great Lakes (Griffiths et al., 1991; Strayer, 1991), the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi into the Black Sea (Vinogradov et al., 1989) and the clam Potamocorbula amurensis into San Francisco Bay (Carlton et al., 1990) have undoubtedly served to highlight the serious nature of this problem. All exotic species alter natural interactions in the invaded ecosystems, but not all pose serious threats to these ecosystems. Unfortunately identifying species likely to establish in new ecosystems is difficult, as is predicting their likely impact (Hengeveld, 1989). There are now over 150 cryptogenic and possibly indroduced species in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria (Marnie Nelson CRIMP pers. comm.). Not all of these species appear to be causing major disruptions but a number of species are causing concern as they occur in large numbers. Recognition that exotic species introduced into Victorian waters may be causing significant ecological effects on our coastal environments resulted in the formation of the Victorian Ballast Water Working Group (VBWWG) in 1994. This group included representatives from Environment Protection Authority (EPA), Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE), Port of Melbourne Authority (PMA) and the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS). VBWWG commissioned two studies in 1995. The first of these (Walters 1996) was a desk study to document patterns of ship visits and ballast water discharge in Victorian ports. The second study was to document the exotic species which had established in each of Victoria's ports and is described in part in this report. This report describes the results of a field survey for exotic species in the Port of Hastings, and subsequent reports will describe exotic species in other Victorian ports. Concern about the impact of exotic species throughout all coastal regions of Australia and particularly near ports, resulted in the establishment of the Centre for Research on Introduced Marine Pests (CRIMP) within the Fisheries Division of the CSIRO in 1994. One of the primary tasks of the Centre is to determine the diversity and distribution of introduced marine species in Australia by surveying a represetative set of ports from all regions in Australia. CRIMP guidelines for the conduct of port surveys for exotic species (Hewitt and Martin, 1996) were used as the basis for the design of an earlier survey of the Port of Portland (Parry et al., 1997). This survey of the Port of Hastings employed precisely the same methods outlined for the Port of Portland survey. A variety of sampling techniques were used to sample a large range of habitats for exotic species in the Port of Hastings. Potential ‘pest’ species were targeted particularly. Sampling strategies were designed to detect species listed on the Australian Ballast Water Management Advisory Council (ABWMAC) schedule of target introduced ‘pest’ species, including Gymnodinium and Alexandrium sp. (toxic dinoflagellates), Undaria pinnatifida (Japanese seaweed), Asterias amurensis 2 (Northern Pacific seastar), Sabella spallanzanii (Giant fan worm) and Carcinus maenus (European shore crab), but not Vibrio cholera (Cholera bacterium) and fish pathogens, although they are also on the ABWMAC schedule. In addition, recent research in Port Phillip Bay confirmed the presence of the exotic bivalve Theora lubrica and identified four newly established, abundant and potentially damaging pest species, the small sabellid polychaete worm Euchone limnicola, the bivalves Corbula gibba (Currie and Parry, 1996) and Musculista senhousia, and the majid crab Pyromaia tuberculata (Parry et al., 1996). These five benthic species were also targeted in our survey. 2. DESCRIPTION OF THE PORT OF HASTINGS The Port of Hastings is located 60 km south east of Melbourne on Westernport Bay. The port currently operates two marine tanker terminals at Crib Point and Long Island, and one cargo terminal at the Steel Industry Wharves (Fig. 1). The deep water port can accommodate vessels up to 165,000 deadweight tonnes, and it presently handles an average of three crude oil carriers, six LPG vessels and eight vessels with steel cargoes per month. Imports are dominated by steel slab which is shipped from Port Kembla in New South Wales to supply the BHP hot strip coating mill at Hastings. Main exports include rolled and coated steel products for domestic and international markets, in addition to crude oil and gas which is piped ashore from Bass Strait. All three commercial shipping terminals are located within 10 km of each other in the North Arm of Westernport Bay. The following habitats were recorded near the terminals: sandy beaches, intertidal mudflats, boulder breakwalls, silty sediments, and concrete/steel piles. Previous studies have documented additional habitats within the bay including salt marsh, mangroves, seagrass beds, and subtidal rocky areas (Marsden and Mallet, 1975; Smith et al., 1975). 2.1 Shipping movements Western Port Bay was first settled by Europeans in 1826, when a British military camp was established to protect colonial shipping movements in Bass Strait. This camp was shortly abandoned, and the natural harbour was little used until after World War II when the potential for a port development in the Bay was recognised.