ALBERT

Description: The occurrence of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi as a new invasive species in the Baltic Sea and the potential consequences for fish stock recruitment was investigated in spring 2007. The study focused on the Bornholm Basin, which serves as the major spawning ground for cod and sprat, the commercially most important fish stocks in the Baltic. The distribution pattern of M. leidyi revealed a substantial overlap with cod eggs. The observed predation of M. leidyi on eggs has the potential to alter the recruitment success of cod, which is the top predator in the system and, thus, to change the Baltic food-web structure.

Description: Repeated invasions of European waters by the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi offer a unique opportunity to study population dynamics and dispersal in gelatinous zooplankton. Here we followed population establishment in two recently invaded areas, the North and Baltic Sea, and analysed changes in population structure during a 3-yr interval using 7 highly polymorphic microsatellites (representing 191 alleles). A second goal was to reconstruct routes of recent invasive range expansion into the Mediterranean Sea During the study period (2008-2010) populations in North Sea and Western Baltic Sea maintained their allelic composition with virtually unchanged levels of genetic diversity and between-population differentiation. This demonstrates that gene flow between the two regions was limited and indicates successful reproduction in both areas. In contrast, at the eastern distribution limit in the central Baltic (Bornholm Basin) the same measures fluctuated between years and genetic diversity decreased from 2008-2010. In concordance with prior ecological observations, this supports the view that here M. leidyi formed a sink population. In the area of recent range expansion (Mediterranean Sea) we observed high population differentiation for a holoplanktonic species. Among Mediterranean samples collected at sites in Spain, France and Israel pairwise differentiation was between Fst = 0.04-0.16. Despite such differentiation, Bayesian clustering and phylogeographic analysis support the hypothesis that all Mediterranean M. leidyi result from a secondary introduction originating in the Black Sea. Our study contributes to growing evidence that multiple invasions of the same species can vary in their degree of genetic diversity and demonstrates how genetic markers can help to resolve whether gelatinous plankton species form self-sustaining populations.

Description: Species identification based on morphological characteristics has caused misidentifications and led to twisted views of abundances and roles of ctenophores. Based on extensive field studies from 2007 to 2010, the occurrence of the arctic ctenophore Mertensia ovum was genetically verified in the southern, central and northern Baltic Sea, and its egg production, distribution and abundance were studied in relation to physical factors. Genetic analyses indicate that M. ovum is by far the most abundant small ctenophore in the Baltic Sea. Specimens from a 20 yr old ctenophore collection were also genetically identified as M. ovum, contrary to their previous morphological identification as another ctenophore species, Pleurobrachia pileus. Thus, earlier reports on P. pileus in the Baltic Sea may actually refer to M. ovum. The abundance of M. ovum was regulated by both salinity and temperature, with highest abundances found in sea areas and water layers at temperatures 〈7°C, salinities 〉5.5 and oxygen levels 〉4 ml l-1. During summer, the highest abundances of ctenophores and their eggs were found near the halocline, while the distribution was more uniform throughout the water column during winter. Only ctenophores 〉3.5 mm (oral-aboral length) produced eggs in the experiments, with an average rate of 2.2 eggs ind.-1 d-1. Finally, comparison with published data from the 1980s (assuming that those data refer to M. ovum) indicates that the present-day ctenophore abundance is ~80% lower in the north and ~55% higher in the southern parts of the Baltic Sea, due to reasons yet to be established.