On the path to cosmopolitanism: the continuing geographic expansion of Caprella mutica (Crustacea, Amphipoda)

By

Beermann, Jan
Rivadeneira, Marcelo M
Thiel, Martin, 1962-

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2025-5-16

Original Publication

Journal of Hymenoptera research

Volume

98

Pages

297--318

Subjects

biofouling , biological invasion , marine dispersal , marine shipping , non-indigenous species

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Washington, D.C International Society of Hymenopterists

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/neobiota.98.138527

 

Abstract

Human activities have been transporting caprellid amphipods (or “skeleton shrimps”) across the oceans for many decades. As a result, some caprellid amphipods now are among the most widespread non-indigenous species in many different coastal regions of the world. The global spread of these species is still ongoing in some cases, such as that of the successful invader Caprella mutica Schurin, 1935. Here, we report on the arrival of C. mutica in South America and modelled its environmental niche based on its current global distribution in order to evaluate future expansion risks. The species distribution model confirmed high occupancy probabilities for already invaded areas of Europe and North America with generally lower probabilities in the southern hemisphere and mean sea surface temperature as best predictor. Further, the model suggested that our discovery of C. mutica in northern Chile was made in a region that is less favorable for this species, while occupancy probabilities increased further south. Given the invasion history of C. mutica in other marine regions of the world and the more favorable oceanographic conditions, a further spread of this invader southwards along the South American Pacific coast seems very likely.