Why the Survey? The question of exactly which invasive species exist within the Commonwealth coastal waters remains unanswered. In 2000, the first rapid assessment survey of invasive marine species conducted along the Massachusetts coastline found that 10 percent of the species identified were not native, including two species that had never been seen before on the East Coast. While some non-indigenous species appear benign, such as the common periwinkle, others can spread rapidly and cause widespread economic and ecological harm. The European green crab and Asian shore crab, for example, are invasives that prey on commercially valuable shellfish, while other species can chew up piers and pilings, damage fisheries, or cause public health problems. The 2003 survey was intended to give scientists a broader look at which exotic species are here and how far they've spread since 2000.

Where Are They?

The 2003 Rapid Assessment Survey

August 3-9, 2003-a marathon week that was a full year in the making. Funded by a grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the seven-day survey was a mission to gather information on what species are actually present in the Northeastern U.S. waters. Jan Smith, Executive Director of the Massachusetts Bays Program, and Dr. Judy Pederson of MIT Sea Grant worked together with seven other National Estuary Programs to arrange the logistics of the rapid assessment survey. Everything was planned down to the minute as the roughly 20-member team had to visit three sites per day (often separated by long drives and occasional ferry connections), eat their meals on the road, visit laboratories for evening identification work, and find sleeping arrangements at night.

The team of scientists first gathered in New Hampshire after arriving from various universities around the country as well as from Italy, Wales, and South Africa. Each participant was an expert in a different taxonomic group, ranging from crustaceans to tunicates. Graduate students from local universities also participated as assistants.

The team visited permanently floating docks and piers at each site, ensuring that they examined a structurally similar habitat type at each location. The docks and piers were also likely to have a variety of marine organisms and several years of growth underneath.

During the 90-minute site visits, the scientists scraped as many organisms (both native and invasive) from the docks as they could find. The equipment used were simple-spatulas to scrape the organisms off the dock and nets to catch them below. Sometimes the organisms were attached to ropes or buoys that were dragged up onto the dock for examination. Many of the common organisms could be identified right away and were put back in the water as a team member with a laptop recorded the identified species. For those organisms that could not be immediately recognized, a clump of the biological material was put in labeled jars in a cooler and taken back to the lab for a thorough evening investigation under a dissecting microscope, sometimes lasting for up to six hours.

Despite a workday that typically lasted from 7:00 a.m. until 11:00 p.m., the scientific crew volunteered their time largely because of their keen interest in invasive species. The team rarely found themselves alone during that rainy first week of August as numerous newspapers, local television stations, and curious onlookers visited over the course of their 20 site visits. Even The National Geographic Society joined the survey for a couple of days to film a segment for an "Explorer" television program to be aired in 2004.

As successful as the survey was, it is just one of the first steps in the fight to control the spread of marine invasive species. The goal of those involved with the survey is to continue their research by repeating the process every four to five years to keep pace with potential future invaders. However, the time in between surveys will be spent on the difficult task of implementing the Massachusetts' Aquatic Invasive Species Management Plan. Prevention is the focus of the plan, but if prevention fails and a harmful species is introduced, a rapid response protocol is needed to let federal, state, and local officials know what technologies they have available to prevent an emergency. A task force is currently developing this rapid response protocol, which will provide detailed pre- and post-invasion steps for officials to take in case of a harmful invasion.

Another key element will be education and training. Survey organizers and members of the Massachusetts Aquatic Invasive Species Working Group will continue to hold workshops for coastal scientists, managers, government agency personnel, and graduate students to give them skills necessary to identify non-native species. The Massachusetts Bays Program is also working with pet stores to educate aquarium owners on how to properly dispose of exotic fish and plants to avoid introducing potentially harmful species into the marine ecosystem.

Though Northeastern coastal waters have yet to witness an invasion as ecologically and economically destructive as that of the zebra mussel, the threat of invasives is significant since marine ecosystems are essentially borderless. Regional coordination and cooperation is necessary to effectively prevent and control future invasions of exotic marine species. Rapid assessment surveys like the one conducted in 2003 are a crucial first step in identifying the species that are here, welcome or not, and whether any of those strange-looking invaders could cause real damage to these shores.

Click here for more information about the survey, including survey data and species maps.

Adapted from an article written for CZM's Coastines by Peter Hanlon.