Case history and persistence of the non-indigenous diatom Coscinodiscus wailesii in the north-east Atlantic

The introduction of non-indigenous marine plankton species can have a considerable ecological and economic effect on regional systems. Their presence, however, can go unnoticed until they reach nuisance status and as a consequence few case histories exist containing information on their initial appe...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom
Main Authors: Edwards, M., John, A.W.G., Johns, D.G., Reid, P.C.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2001
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0025315401003654
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0025315401003654
Description
Summary:The introduction of non-indigenous marine plankton species can have a considerable ecological and economic effect on regional systems. Their presence, however, can go unnoticed until they reach nuisance status and as a consequence few case histories exist containing information on their initial appearance and their spatio–temporal patterns. Here we report on the occurrence of the non-indigenous diatom Coscinodiscus wailesii in 1977 in the English Channel, its subsequent geographical spread into European shelf seas, and its persistence as a significant member of the diatom community in the north-east Atlantic from 1977–1995.