The initial version (v1) of the Fish Invasiveness Scoring Kit (FISK) was adapted from the Weed Risk Assessment of Pheloung, Williams, and Halloy to assess the potential invasiveness of nonnative freshwater fishes in the United Kingdom. Published applications of FISK v1 have been primarily in temperate-zone countries (Belgium, Belarus, and Japan), so the specificity of this screening tool to that climatic zone was not noted until attempts were made to apply it in peninsular Florida. To remedy this shortcoming, the questions and guidance notes of FISK v1 were reviewed and revised to improve clarity and extend its applicability to broader climatic regions, resulting in changes to 36 of the 49 questions. In addition, upgrades were made to the software architecture of FISK to improve overall computational speed as well as graphical user interface flexibility and friendliness. We demonstrate the process of screening a fish species using FISK v2 in a realistic management scenario by assessing the Barcoo grunter Scortum barcoo (Terapontidae), a species whose management concerns are related to its potential use for aquaponics in Florida. The FISK v2 screening of Barcoo grunter placed the species into the lower range of medium risk (score = 5), suggesting it is a permissible species for use in Florida under current nonnative species regulations. Screening of the Barcoo grunter illustrates the usefulness of FISK v2 as a proactive tool serving to inform risk management decisions, but the low level of confidence associated with the assessment highlighted a dearth of critical information on this species.

Biological invasions are increasing in frequency and the need to mitigate or control their effects is a major challenge to natural resource managers. Failure to control invasive species has been attributed to inadequate policies, resources or scientific knowledge. Often, natural resource managers with limited funds are tasked with the development of an invasive species control program without access to key decision-support information such as whether or not an invasive species will cause damage, and what the extent of that damage may be. Once damages are realized, knowing where to allocate resources and target control efforts is not straightforward. Here we present the history of invasive species policy development and management in a large, multi-jurisdictional and multi-use aquatic ecosystem. We present a science-based decision-support tool for on-the-ground aquatic invasive species (AIS) control to support the development of a sustainable control program. Lastly, we provide a set of recommendations for managers desiring to make an AIS control implementation plan based upon our development of novel invasive species research, policy and management in Lake Tahoe (USA). We find that a sustainable invasive species control program is possible when science, coordination and outreach are integrated.

Three species of transgenic fluorescent ornamental fish are commercially available to the public in the United States-Zebra Danio Danio rerio, Black Tetra Gymnocorymbus ternetzi, and Tiger Barb Systomus tetrazona. Despite qualitative assessments of the risks of these transgenic fishes by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and two state agencies, critics argue that the risk assessment and approval processes were not transparent and that the results were never published or otherwise open to scientific scrutiny. We used an internationally recognized risk screening tool, the Fish Invasiveness Screening Kit (FISK), to provide a transparent, peer-reviewed assessment for the conterminous United States. We found that the three transgenic fluorescent ornamental fishes in question represent a low risk of invasiveness. Any risk is limited to the warmer regions of the country. No potential for hybridization with native species, little history of invasiveness elsewhere, a lack of traits associated with persistence, and small body size coupled with predation-enhancing fluorescence all indicate that the ability of these species to become established and have impacts is limited even in warm regions. Our finding of low risk is consistent with the results of unpublished, qualitative agency assessments using expert panels or in-house expertise. The risk screens identified few data gaps, areas of important uncertainty, or potentially elevated risk levels, thus suggesting that there would be limited gain to committing resources to a full risk assessment. A low-risk result further indicates little need for risk management actions in addition to those already being taken. Risk screens such as FISK can have high value for managers because they capture important elements of risk, providing vital information for assessment and management decisions with relatively small investments in time and funding.an updated RFP fish (Hill et al. 2011) and four additional color varieties of Zebra Danio followed. A green-fluorescent-protein (GFP) Black Tetra Gymnocorymbus ternetzi was marketed in 2012, followed by two additional color varieties. A GFP Tiger Barb Systomus tetrazona (also known as Puntius tetrazona) was commercialized recently.Commercialization of transgenic fluorescent ornamental fish has met with controversy (Nagare et al. 2009), with opponents expressing concern over their escape and establishment 817 818 HILL ET AL.

The trade in ornamental fish is increasingly viewed as a major source for the introduction of invasive species into the environment. However, few ornamental fishes are established and widespread in the conterminous United States, and fewer still are thought to cause noticeable environmental impacts. To better evaluate the risk of this pathway, we conducted a risk screen of 34 important freshwater ornamental fish species by using the Fish Invasiveness Screening Kit (FISK) version 2 for the conterminous United States. Screens from three to five independent assessors resulted in categorization of 91–100% of the species as noninvasive. The low climate match of these mostly tropical species largely confines establishment risk to subtropical regions, primarily peninsular Florida, and to isolated thermal refuges (e.g., geothermal springs) in otherwise unsuitable climates. Few data on impacts exist for tropical ornamental fish in the conterminous United States, and there is little evidence for the occurrence of large, long‐term effects despite local impacts for a few species. Our results indicate that the freshwater tropical ornamental fish trade is less risky to the conterminous United States than has been concluded in most previous studies. Further risk assessment for management decisions might be required on a regional scale or for localized, high‐risk situations. Received November 3, 2016; accepted March 23, 2017 Published online July 18, 2017

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