Ship Biofouling as a Vector for Non-indigenous Aquatic Species to Canadian Arctic Coastal Ecosystems: A Survey and Modeling-Based Assessment

Abstract

Ship biofouling is a major vector for the introduction and spread of harmful marine species globally; however, its importance in Arctic coastal ecosystems is understudied. The objective of this study was to provide insight regarding the extent of biofouling (i.e., percent cover, abundance, and species richness) on commercial ships operating in the Canadian Arctic. A questionnaire was used to collect information on travel history, antifouling practices, and self-reported estimates of biofouling extent from ships operating in the region during 2015–2016. Twenty-five percent of ships operating in the region during the study period completed the questionnaire (n = 50). Regression trees were developed to infer the percent cover of biofouling, total abundance of fouling invertebrates, and fouling species richness on respondent ships based on previous underwater wetted surface assessments of commercial ships in Canada. Age of antifouling coating system was the only significant predictor of percent cover and total abundance of biofouling invertebrates, while the number of biogeographic realms previously visited and port residence time were significant predictors for fouling species richness. Comparison of relevant travel history features reported through the questionnaire to the regression tree models revealed that 41.9% of 43 respondent ships had antifouling coating systems older than 630 days and are therefore inferred to have relatively high (> 9.3%) biofouling percent cover. More than half of respondent ships (62.8%) had antifouling coating systems older than 354 days and are therefore inferred to have a relatively high total abundance (over 6,500 individuals) of fouling invertebrates. Nearly half of respondent ships (45.9% of 37 ships) had visited at least three biogeographic realms during their last 10 ports-of-call and are therefore inferred to have relatively high fouling species richness (mean 42 taxa). Self-reported estimates of biofouling cover were unreliable, being much lower than model inferences. Although the regression tree models have relatively low predictive power, explaining only 15–33% of the variance in biofouling extent, this study indicates that commercial ships are an active pathway for the transportation of non-indigenous aquatic species to Canadian Arctic coastal ecosystems via biofouling.

Species Composition and Distribution of Hull-Fouling Macroinvertebrates Differ According to the Areas of Research Vessel Operation

“…In this study, the species composition of the ocean-going vessel community was poor, while the coastal vessel community composition was richer. The reason is that the ocean navigation type of two research vessels had very short anchorage days at ocean ports (22 days/year for the Isabu and 9 days/year for the Onnuri) and long operating days (186 days/year for the Isabu and 101 days/year for the Onnuri) (Supplementary Table S3) [16,96,97]. Therefore, it is assumed that the short anchorage days are because there are fewer opportunities for fouling organisms to attach to the operational hull.…”

A crosslinked silicone coating adjusted by an additive with promising antifouling and ice nucleation inhibition performance

“…3,4 There is a widespread demand for antifouling and anti-icing coatings suitable for vessels traveling between the tropics/subtropics and the Arctic regions. 5,6 Despite the many advantages of slippery liquid-infused porous surfaces (SLIPS) and superhydrophobic coatings in the field of antifouling and anti-icing, the durability of SLIPS is limited due to lubricant depletion. Meanwhile, the superhydrophobic surfaces possess unstable micro-structures.…”

Non-native species in the north Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea) revealed from environmental DNA

“…Maritime traffic is a well-known way of spreading non-indigenous species (NIS) around the world (Sardain et al, 2019;Iacarella et al, 2020). Many examples demonstrate that ships carry numerous species in different compartments, principally attached to the hull (Chan et al, 2022) and in ballast water (Ardura et al, 2020). As a consequence, commercial ports and marinas are considered hotspots of biological invasions (Ferrario et al, 2017), and the projected invasion risk due to the global increase of maritime traffic is surging in many countries (Sardain et al, 2019).…”